Chinese Proverbs About Life & Wisdom — Page 8

Hǎi nà bǎi chuān, yǒu róng nǎi dà

"The ocean accepts a hundred rivers; having capacity, it becomes great"

Níng kě dé zuì jūnzǐ, bù kě dé zuì xiǎorén

"Better to offend a gentleman than to offend a petty person"

Zhǐ xǔ zhōu guān fàng huǒ, bù xǔ bǎi xìng diǎn dēng

"Only officials are allowed to set fires; common people are not permitted to light lamps"

Lǎo jiàng chū mǎ, yī gè dǐng liǎ

"When an old general goes to war, one counts as two"

Jiāng shì lǎo de là

"Old ginger is the spiciest"

Yī zhāo bèi shé yǎo, shí nián pà jǐng shéng

"A single traumatic experience creates lasting fear"

Hǎo le shāng bā wàng le téng

"People quickly forget past suffering once circumstances improve"

Yī rén dé dào, jī quǎn shēng tiān

"When one person attains the Way, chickens and dogs rise to heaven"

Yī kǒu chī bù chéng pàngzi

"You cannot become fat from just one bite"

Yī zhāo bù shèn, mǎn pán jiē shū

"One careless move loses the entire game"

Tīng jūn yī xí huà, shèng dú shí nián shū

"Listening to one conversation with you surpasses reading books for ten years"

Yī pù shí hán

"One day of exposure, ten days of cold"

Jiā yǒu yī lǎo, rú yǒu yī bǎo

"Having an elderly person at home is like having a treasure"

Yī gè lí ba sān gè zhuāng, yī gè hǎo hàn sān gè bāng

"A fence needs three posts; a hero needs three helpers"

Rénshēng dé yī zhījǐ zú yǐ, sī shì dāng yǐ tóng huái shì zhī

"In life, obtaining one true soulmate is sufficient; in this world, we should view each other with shared hearts"

Yī fū dāng guān, wàn fū mò kāi

"One man guards the pass, ten thousand cannot break through"

Yī shī zú chéng qiān gǔ hèn, zài huí tóu yǐ bǎi nián shēn

"One misstep becomes an eternal regret; turning back again, a hundred years have passed"

Xué ránhòu zhī bùzú

"Only after learning do you realize your inadequacy"

Suì hán, rán hòu zhī sōng bǎi zhī hòu diāo yě

"When the year grows cold, then we know the pine and cypress are the last to wither"

Wàn bān jiē xià pǐn, wéi yǒu dúshū gāo

"Ten thousand pursuits are all inferior; only reading books is high"

Niú tóu bù duì mǎ zuǐ

"An ox head does not match a horse's mouth"

Sān guò jiā mén ér bù rù

"Passing by one's own door three times without entering"

Qiánshì bú wàng, hòushì zhī shī

"Past events not forgotten serve as teachers for future events"

Ān bù wàng wēi, zhì bù wàng luàn

"In times of peace, do not forget danger; in times of order, do not forget chaos"

Táo lǐ mǎn tiān xià

"Peaches and plums fill the world"

Jiǎn le zhī ma, diū le xī guā

"Picked up sesame seeds, lost the watermelon"

Zhū Bājiè zhào jìng zi — lǐ wài bù shì rén

"Zhu Bajie looking in the mirror — neither inside nor outside is a person"

Móu shì zài rén, chéng shì zài tiān

"Planning lies with people, success lies with heaven"

Jì huà gǎn bu shàng biàn huà

"Plans cannot keep pace with changes"

Shì yǐ mì chéng, yǔ yǐ xiè bài

"Plans succeed through secrecy, fail through leaks"

Zhòng guā dé guā, zhòng dòu dé dòu

"Plant melon, get melon; plant bean, get bean"

Duì niú tán qín

"Playing the lute to a bull"

Dāngjúzhě mí, pángguānzhě qīng

"Those involved are confused; bystanders see clearly"

Pín jū nào shì wú rén wèn, fù zài shēn shān yǒu yuǎn qīn

"Poor in the bustling city, no one asks after you; rich in the deep mountains, distant relatives visit"

Pín jiàn bù néng yí

"Poverty and lowliness cannot make one waver"

Pín jiàn fū qī bǎi shì āi

"A poor and lowly couple finds sorrow in everything."

Rén qióng zhì duǎn, mǎ shòu máo cháng

"When a person is poor, their ambition shrinks; when a horse is thin, its hair grows long"

Rén qióng zhì bù qióng

"Poor in pockets, not poor in spirit"

shú néng shēng qiǎo

"Familiarity breeds skill; practice makes perfect"

Wēi rú lěi luǎn

"As dangerous as a pile of stacked eggs"

Fáng huàn yú wèi rán

"Prevent disaster before it occurs"

Mǎn zhāo sǔn, qiān shòu yì

"Pride invites loss, humility receives benefit"

Zǎixiàng dù lǐ hǎo chēng chuán

"A prime minister's belly is big enough to sail a boat"

Bá miáo zhù zhǎng

"Pulling up shoots to help them grow"

Luóbo báicài, gè yǒu suǒ ài

"Radish or cabbage, each person has what they love"

Yǎng ér fāng zhī fù mǔ ēn

"Only after raising children yourself do you truly understand your parents' grace"

Dúshū xū yòng yì, yī zì zhí qiān jīn

"When reading, you must apply your mind; one word is worth a thousand gold"

Jìng jiǔ bù chī chī fá jiǔ

"Refusing a polite offer only to face a harsher alternative"

Xuányá lè mǎ

"To rein in one's horse at the edge of a cliff"

Ēn jiāng chóu bào

"To repay kindness with enmity"