Chinese Proverbs About Life & Wisdom — Page 7

Yè gōng hào lóng

"Lord Ye loves dragons"

Wáng yáng bǔ láo, yóu wèi wǎn yě

"When the sheep is lost, mend the pen; it is not yet too late"

Léi shēng dà, yǔ diǎn xiǎo

"The thunder is loud, but the raindrops are small"

Shēng dōng jī xī

"Make a sound in the east, strike in the west"

Rén suàn bùrú tiān suàn

"Human calculation cannot match heaven's calculation"

Rén wèi cái sǐ, niǎo wèi shí wáng

"Humans die for wealth, birds perish for food."

Qǐ rén yōu tiān

"The man of Qi worries about the sky"

Tángláng bǔ chán, huángquè zài hòu

"The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind"

Zhongren shichai huoyan gao

"When many people gather firewood, the flames burn high"

Kè zhōu qiú jiàn

"Carve a mark on the boat to seek the sword"

Qǔ qī qǔ dé bù qǔ sè, jiāo yǒu jiāo xīn bù jiāo cái

"Marry a wife for virtue, not beauty; make friends for their hearts, not their wealth"

Guā tián bù nà lǚ, lǐ xià bù zhěng guān

"In a melon patch, don't bend to adjust your shoes; under a plum tree, don't reach up to fix your hat"

Guā wú gǔn yuán, rén wú shí quán

"No melon is perfectly round; no person is completely perfect"

Wáng yáng bǔ láo, wéi shí wèi wǎn

"Mend the fence after losing a sheep—it's not too late"

Shī zhī háolí, miù yǐ qiānlǐ

"A tiny error at the start leads to a massive mistake at the end"

Guò le zhè ge cūn, méi le zhè ge diàn

"Opportunities are fleeting; seize them when they appear"

Nào lǐ yǒu qián, jìng chù ān shēn

"In the noise, there is money; in a quiet place, one finds peace"

Jīn qián bù shì wàn néng de

"Money is not omnipotent"

Qián bù shì wàn néng de, méi qián shì wàn wàn bù néng de

"Money is not omnipotent, but having no money is absolutely impossible."

Yuè dào shíwǔ guāngmíng shǎo, rén dào zhōngnián wànshì xiū

"After the fifteenth, the moon's brightness fades; at middle age, all endeavors rest"

Duō gè péngyǒu duō tiáo lù, duō gè yuānjia duō dǔ qiáng

"One more friend, one more path; one more enemy, one more wall"

Zhāo bù bǎo xī

"Morning does not guarantee evening"

Lǎoshǔ guò jiē — rén rén hǎn dǎ

"A mouse crossing the street — everyone shouts to beat it"

Yán duō bì shī

"Much speech inevitably leads to mistakes"

Duō yán shù qióng, bù rú shǒu zhōng

"Many words soon exhaust — better to hold to the center"

Dé guò qiě guò

"Just get by and let it pass"

Yǎba chī huánglián——yǒu kǔ shuō bù chū

"A mute person eats goldthread—has bitterness but cannot speak of it"

Míng bù zhèng zé yán bù shùn

"If the name is not correct, words will not be accepted"

Āi jīn sì jīn, āi yù sì yù

"Near gold, one resembles gold; near jade, one resembles jade"

Jìn zhū zhě chì, jìn mò zhě hēi

"Near vermilion, one turns red; near ink, one turns black"

Jìn shuǐ zhī yú xìng, jìn shān shí niǎo yīn

"Near water, know fish nature; near mountains, recognize bird calls"

Bù zhì kě fǒu

"To neither affirm nor deny; to withhold judgment"

Wàisheng dǎ dēnglong — zhào jiù (zhào jiù)

"A nephew holds the lantern — lighting the way for his uncle (a pun: 'lighting the uncle' sounds identical to 'same as before')"

Huó dào lǎo, xué dào lǎo

"Live until old age, learn until old age"

Xīn guān shàngrèn sān bǎ huǒ

"A new official lights three fires upon taking office"

Chūshēng niúdú bù pà hǔ

"A newborn calf does not fear the tiger"

Xíng bǎi lǐ zhě bàn jiǔ shí

"For those traveling a hundred miles, ninety is only half"

Lí le hóng luóbo bù chéng xí

"Without red carrots, there's no proper banquet"

Fù cháo zhī xià wú wán luǎn

"When a nest is overturned, no eggs remain whole"

Méiyǒu guīju, bù chéng fāngyuán

"Without compass and square, you cannot make squares and circles"

Shān zhōng wú lǎohǔ——hóuzi chēng dàwáng

"When there's no tiger in the mountains, the monkey declares himself king"

Jūn zǐ tǎn dàng dàng, xiǎo rén cháng qī qī

"The noble is broad and serene; the petty is always anxious"

Bù wèi wǔ dǒu mǐ zhé yāo

"Refusing to compromise one's integrity for material gain"

Bù zài qí wèi, bù móu qí zhèng

"Don't plan what isn't your position"

Bù dāngjiā bù zhī cháimǐ guì

"If you don't manage a household, you won't know how expensive firewood and rice are"

Bù dào Huánghé xīn bù sǐ

"Until reaching the Yellow River, the heart will not give up"

Bù jiàn guāncai bù lèilèi

"One doesn't shed tears until seeing the coffin"

Shì shàng wú nán shì, zhǐ pà yǒu xīn rén

"Nothing in the world is difficult; it only fears the person with a determined heart"

Wú kě fèng gào

"No comment / Nothing to report"

Tiān xià mò róu ruò yú shuǐ, ér gōng jiān qiáng zhě mò zhī néng shèng

"Nothing under heaven is softer or weaker than water — yet nothing is better at overcoming the hard and strong"