xíng jiāng jiù mù

to be close to death; to approach death

直译: to enter the coffin soon

xíng yǒu yú lì

to have time and energy remaining after doing something

出处: From the Analects, Book 1 (《論語·學而》)

yī guān chǔ chǔ

immaculately dressed; well-groomed; dapper

出处: From the Classic of Poetry, poem 150 (《詩經·曹風·蜉蝣》)

yán bù jí yì

to never talk about anything serious; to talk frivolously

出处: From the Analects, Book 15 (《論語·衞靈公》)

shuō gǔ dào jīn

💡 Эртний, одоогийн бүхнийг ярих — юм бүхний тухай ярих.

出处: From General Yue Fei [circa 17th–18th c.].

chē zài dǒu liáng

ubiquitous and numerous

直译: enough to fill carts and be measured by the bushel

出处: From the Book of Wu, quoted by Pei Songzhi in his annotations to The Records of the Three Kingdoms (《三國志·吳書·孫權傳》)

guò yóu bù jí

💡 Хэтрэх нь дутахтай адил — хэмжээ хэрэгтэй.

出处: From the Analects, Book 11 (《論語·先進》)

shù ér bù zuò

to refrain from unwarranted innovations; to resist the temptation to speculate

出处: From the Analects, Book 7 (《論語·述而》): : The identity of 老彭 was unclear. According to the Elder Dai's Book of Rites (《大戴禮記》), a wise nobleman of the Shang-era bore that appellation.

tuì bì sān shè

to give way to avoid a conflict in the face of superior strength (to avoid heavy losses)

直译: to retreat ninety li

出处: From the account of Duke Wen of Jin, who, prior to becoming the ruler of Jin, had fled from a succession crisis and had been seeking shelter in various states. After receiving him, King Cheng of Chu asked how he would pay back if he were to become the ruler of Jin. His reply was (《左傳·僖公二十三年》)

yí chòu wàn nián

to go down in history as a byword of infamy; to leave a herostratic fame.

直译: to leave a stink for ten thousand years

出处: From A New Account of the Tales of the World: : In Literary Chinese, 載／载 (zǎi) means the same here as 年 (nián).

jiǔ chí ròu lín

debauched activities; excessive extravagance

直译: pool of wine and forest of meat

出处: Most famously, referring to the recreational facility built by King Zhou of Shang: : Alternatively, from the same book (Shiji), describing the abundance of wine and meat and the wealthiness during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han

jīn yù mǎn táng

extremely rich

直译: to have a house filled with gold and jade

出处: From Tao Te Ching

jīn kē yù lǜ

a law, discipline, norm or regulation that is considered absolute and not allowed to be disputed or challenged

cháng zhì jiǔ ān

long-term peace and stability; prolonged political stability

出处: From a memorial to Emperor Wen of Han by Jia Yi, recorded in The Book of Han

yīn qíng yuán quē

dim, bright, full or crescent; the various shapes of the Moon; (figurative) unpredictability of life; vicissitudes of life

出处: From Su Shi's Shuidiao Getou.

zhèn jí

short for 地震震級／地震震级 (dìzhèn zhènjí, “earthquake magnitude”)

yǐn shuǐ sī yuán

💡 Ус уухдаа эх булгаа сана — ач тусыг бүү март.

直译: drink water, consider the source

出处: From "Tune in the Key of Zhǐ" (徵調曲) written by Yu Xin (庾信) during the Northern and Southern dynasties: : i.e. remember where and how the fruit/water came from. Don’t just be thankful for the fruit/water. The idiom makes use of the latter half: be thankful for all the elements and processes (both past and present) that allowed you to enjoy that humble cup of water.

shǒu dāng qí chōng

to be the first to suffer (attack or disaster); taking the lead; first; more important, crucial or prominent

出处: Formed based on a line in the Book of Han: First attested in the Draft History of Qing

jià qīng jiù shú

to perform a task with which one is very familiar with great ease; (to deem a task) a piece of cake; (to go for) a hay ride

直译: to drive a light carriage on a familiar route

出处: First attested in 810 CE, in Han Yu's prose

jī tóng yā jiǎng

mutually unintelligible; unable to understand one another; to talk past each other; getting one's wires crossed

直译: a chicken talking to a duck

出处: Originally Cantonese.

yī yǐ guàn zhī

💡 Бүх зүйлээ нэг зарчмаар холбон авч явна гэсэн санаа.

出处: From the Analects, Book 4 (《論語·里仁》)

yī xī shàng cún

💡 Амьд байгаа цагтаа зорилгоосоо татгалзахгүй гэсэн тэсвэр хатуужил.

yī diǎn yī dī

💡 Юмыг маш багаар, тэвчээртэй хуримтлуулна гэсэн санаа.

出处: Compare 點滴／点滴 (diǎndī).

yī bì zhī lì

💡 Бага ч атугай тус дэм үзүүлнэ гэсэн санаа.

yī nuò qiān jīn

💡 Хэлсэн үг маш үнэ цэнэтэй, амлалтаа биелүүлнэ гэсэн санаа.

出处: From Records of the Grand Historian, by Sima Qian.

sān tóu liù bì

💡 Ер бусын их чадвар, олон талт ур чадварыг илэрхийлнэ.

直译: three heads and six arms

出处: Originally describing the appearance of the mythological figure Nezha.

bù yǔ zhì píng

💡 Тайлбар, сэтгэгдэл өгөхөөс албан ёсоор татгалзана гэсэн санаа.

bù niàn jiù è

💡 Хуучин гомдол өшөөг санахгүй, өршөөж мартана гэсэн санаа.

出处: From the Analects, Book 5 (《論語·公冶長》)

bù huò zhī nián

💡 Амьдралын зам мөрөндөө тодорхой, эргэлзэхгүй болсон дөчин настай хүн.

出处: From the Analects, Book 2 (《論語·爲政》)

shì shuāi dào wēi

💡 Нийгмийн ёс суртахуун доройтож, зөв мөр алдагдсан цаг үе.

出处: From Mencius

sàng jiā zhī gǒu

💡 Түшиг тулгуургүй, хаана хандахаа мэдэхгүй өрөвдмөөр байдал.

出处: From the Records of the Grand Historian: : 喪家之狗 was later reanalysed as "a dog that has lost its home", which would often go hungry and wander the streets in search for food, due to neglect by its master. Later, this became a metaphor for a desperate person who has nobody to turn to.

zhōng shān láng

💡 Сайн сайхныг мартаж, тусалсан хүндээ хорлол учруулдаг үнэнч бус хүн.

出处: From a fable written by Ma Zhongxi (1446–1512). The original text is on Wikisource and a full translation can be found in Anthology of Chinese Literature, Vol. 2, pp. 46 to 52, translated by James R. Hightower.

lín shēn lǚ bó

💡 Аюул ойрхон нөхцөлд туйлын болгоомжтой байх.

出处: Short for 如臨深淵，如履薄冰／如临深渊，如履薄冰 (rúlínshēnyuān, rúlǚbóbīng, “as if on the brink of a chasm; as if treading upon a thin layer of ice”). See 戰戰兢兢／战战兢兢 (zhànzhànjīngjīng) for details.

jiǔ jiǎ bù guī

💡 Түр зуур зээлж авсан зүйлээ буцаахгүй, өөрийнх мэт болгодог.

出处: Originally, “to borrow the name of renyi (benevolence and righteousness) without actually practicing them”. From Jin Xin I of Mencius

wáng guó zhī yīn

💡 Улс орон мөхөх шатанд байгаа үедийн доройтсон урлаг, соёл.

出处: From the Book of Rites, Book 19 (《禮記·樂記》)

rén wáng zhèng xī

💡 Удирдагч явмагц түүний бодлого, ажил хэрэг зогсдог гэсэн санаа.

出处: From the Doctrine of the Mean (《中庸》) in the Book of Rites