Chinese idioms about patience and perseverance
A set of proverbs to help you cope stoically with life's ups and downs. Perseverance and restraint are the common themes from this large collection.
日暮途穷 [日暮途窮]
sunset road exhausted
The day is ending and the road narrows
The end game is upon us.
On last legs
常将有日思无日,莫将无时想有时 [常將有日思無日莫將無旹想有旹]
normal support has day think nothing day, noone support nothing time think has time
When rich there is time to think all day, when poor there is no time to think
When rich, you have time to dream, but do not dream of riches when you are poor
吃软不吃硬 [吃軟不吃硬]
eat soft not eat hard
Only able to chew tender food, not the tough
Unable to withstand harsh criticism
海纳百川 [海納百川]
sea admit hundred rivers
All rivers run to the sea
We all shared a common destiny
好马不吃回头草 [好馬不吃回頭草]
good horse no eat return head grass
A good horse will not eat the grass behind it
Pride may forbid a person going back to his home town after failure. Do not dwell on past actions, progress forward
天下没有不散的宴席 [天下沒有不散的宴席]
world does not have no break up of banquet
No banquet in the world goes on forever
Good fortune can not last for ever
All good things must come to an end
水满则溢 [水滿則溢]
water full level overflow
Water rises only to overflow
At the point of a crisis. Things are about to turn around
The tide is on the turn
骑虎难下 [騎虎難下]
ride tiger difficult down
When on a tiger's back, it is hard to dismount
When taking risks you have to live with the consequences, it is difficult to back out
He who sups with the Devil should have a long spoon
饥不择食 [飢不擇食]
hunger not choose eat
When hungry don't care what you eat
The starving aren't fussy over their food - take whatever is available
Beggars can't be choosers
一笑解千愁
one smile separate ten thousand worries
One smile can erase a myriad worries
Keep cheerful against all the odds
Keep your chin up
揠苗助长 [揠苗助長]
pull up seedling help lengthen
Stretching young plants to make them grow
Be patient and let nature run its course
Patience is a virtue. A watched pot never boils
塞翁失马,安知非福 [塞翁失馬安知非福]
frontier old man lose horse, peace know wrong blessing
When the old man from the frontier lost his horse; how could he have known that it would not be fortuitous?
The story ➚ is that a man lost his horse but actually it went over the Great Wall and brought back several horses with it. A setback may turn out to be a blessing in disguise.
Every cloud has a silver lining
福无重至,祸不单行 [福無重至旤不單行]
good fortune not double arrive, misfortune not single walk
Blessings come along alone; troubles often come together
Bad fortune is more frequent than good
Ill fortune comes in threes
冰冻三尺,非一日之寒 [冰凍三尺非一日之寒]
ice freeze three foot, wrong one day single cold
Three feet of ice is not formed in a single day
It takes time to achieve satisfactory results
Rome was not built in a day
藕断丝连 [藕斷絲連]
lotus root break silken thread links
Although the lotus root may be cut, its fibered threads are still connected
Friendship survives adversity
捷足先登
victory foot first climb
The winning foot is the first to climb
To succeed need to start off first
The early bird gets the worm
木已成舟
tree cease make boat
The tree has been made into a boat
Too late to change anything
What's done is done
夜长梦多 [夜長夢多]
night long dream many
The longer the night, the more dreams there will be
When in hard times it is foolish to merely dream of better things
If wishes were horses, beggars would ride
树欲静而风不止 [樹欲靜而風不止]
tree desire quiet but wind not still
The trees prefer calm, but the wind does not stop
In spite of a wish for peace, trouble is brewing. Things develop regardless of how you might wish. Powerless to influence outcome
A Chinese bamboo book, open and unfolded to display the contents. This copy of The Art of War 孙子兵法 by Sun Wu is part of a collection at the University of California, Riverside ➚. It was either commissioned or transcribed by the Qing Emperor Qianlong.
Image by bluefootedbooby ➚ available under a Creative Commons license ➚
覆水难收 [覆水難收]
spilled water difficult collect
Spilled water can not be recovered
What is done is done. The situation can not be restored to how it once was
There's no use crying over spilt milk
卷土重来 [捲土重來]
sweep dust again come
Sweeping off the dust and trying again
Making a comeback after a setback - determined to have another go. Like getting back on a horse after being thrown off.
Dust yourself off and start all over again
忍辱负重 [忍辱負重]
endure disgrace bear repetition
Enduring humiliations in line of duty
Willing to put up with disgrace and humiliation so that work can be done. Often applied to someone given a very difficult but important task.
Taking the flak
宁为玉碎,不为瓦全 [宁為玉碎不為瓦全]
stand pride jade broken, no pride tile complete
Don't be a proud piece of broken jade, be a complete tile
Stand up against enemies do not give in. Keep your integrity and stand firm
Fall on your sword
白手起家
clear hand make house
Empty hand make house
To build up something from nothing
生米煮成熟饭 [生米煮成熟飯]
produce rice cook accomplish well-cooked food
The rice has already been cooked
What has been done can not be undone
What's done is done
因噎废食 [因噎廢食]
because choke abandon eat
If is foolish to refuse to eat just because of the chance of choking
Life does not come without risks. Risk of failure is not an argument for not trying
苛政猛于虎 [苛政猛於虎]
severe government fierce tiger
Tyranny is more terrible than tigers
The story is that Confucius met a woman near mount Taishan who was weeping bitterly. When asked, she said she had lost father-in-law, husband and son to marauding tigers. When Confucius asked why then she did not move to a safer village she replied that she was sheltering from a despotic government and would rather risk tigers than oppression. Evil government is the worst of evils.
留得青山在,不怕没柴烧 [留得青山在不怕沒柴燒]
remain get green mountain exist, no fear have no firewood
So long as the green mountains are preserved, there will be no shortage of firewood
Do not despair, there is plenty of time and opportunity
Everything comes to him who waits
祸不单行 [旤不單行]
disaster not alone walk
Disasters do not walk alone
Misfortunes tend to come all at once
When it rains, it pours
山不转路转 [山不轉路轉]
mountain no turn road turn
A mountain cannot turn, but a road can
It is not necessary to continue in the same direction, there are other alternatives to avoid an obstacle
There's more than one way to skin a cat
念念不忘
study study not neglect
Do not neglect your studies. Ponder on problems
Study hard. Keep thinking about a problem
Where there's a will there's a way
一朝一夕
one morning one evening
One morning and one evening
A short space of time. Something transient that will soon pass.
Over in a flash
乐极生悲 [樂極生悲]
joy extreme produce sorrow
After pleasure comes sorrow
Wallowing in pleasure will lead to regrets afterwards. Restrain yourself or you'll regret it
苦尽甘来 [苦儘甘來]
bitter exhuast sweet arrive
Bitterness over, happiness arrives. At the end of suffering comes relief
After troubles comes happiness
The darkest hour is just before the dawn
大器晚成
large utensil late complete
Large vessels take longer to complete
It takes a long time and great care to make something worthwhile. An admonishment to persevere in studies or work. Often used to describe late developing talent.
Rome wasn't built in a day
多难兴邦 [多難興邦]
many difficulty flourish nation
Many hardships can rejuvenate a nation
A calamity that may prompt a resurgence. An encouragement to continue striving in the hope that things will improve.
Hope springs eternal
物极必反 [物極必反]
thing extreme certainly turn around
Extreme conditions will surely calm down
Things will turn around in the opposite direction when they reach the highest point
The tide is on the turn
既往不咎
already past not to blame
It is pointless to blame past events
What is done is done. It is pointless to live a life of regret for things that can't be changed.
Forgive and forget
小洞不补,大洞吃苦 [小洞不補大洞吃苦]
small hole no mend big hole eat bitter
A small hole not mended in time will soon become a larger hole more difficult to mend
Do not put off taking action to put things right
A stitch in time saves nine
吃一堑,长一智 [吃一塹長一智]
eat one chasm long one wise
Fall into a pit but learn from the experience
Gain wisdom from experience of set backs
Learn from your mistakes
卧薪尝胆 [臥薪甞膽]
lie fuel taste gall
Lying on straw and tasting gall
Patiently suffering while plotting revenge or recovery. Sleeping rough and eating poor food while preparing for a comeback.
Harboring a grudge
别无长物 [別無長物]
leave nothing surplus
Having nothing to spare
In great poverty, possessing nothing other than the bare essentials.
The cupboard is bare
一步一个脚印儿 [一步一個腳印兒]
one stride one footprint
Every step leaves a footprint
Work steadily one step at a time in order to make solid progress
Rome was not built in a day
节外生枝 [節外生枝]
joint outside produce branch
Leaves emerge from where they should not
New problems pop up unexpectedly
否极泰来 [否極泰來]
evil extreme good arrive
At the extreme point of misfortune, good will surely arrive
Things at the worst will mend
The darkest hour is just before the dawn
来日方长 [來日方長]
arrive day region long
Long time ahead
There is adequate time to achieve your desires
All things come to those who wait
行尸走肉 [行屍走肉]
walk corpse walk flesh
A walking zombie
An unworthy person. Someone bereft of value - just a walking body with no active mind.
见怪不怪 [見怪不怪]
see monster not monster
Calm at the sight of the unknown
Face the unexpected and disturbing with calmness and fortitude
Keep a cool head
粗茶淡饭 [粗茶淡飯]
coarse tea bland food
On a starvation diet
Eat simple home-made food and yet be healthy
循序渐进 [循序漸進]
follow order gradually enter
Make gradual progress one step at a time
To make steady step by step progress towards an end
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step
从容不迫 [從容不迫]
unhurried not urgent
Calm and unhurried
Taking life calmly and in your stride. Untroubled.
Without a care in the world
雨过天晴 [雨過天晴]
rain past heaven bright
The rain has gone, the sky brightens
Things are improving. Hope for the future
亡戟得矛
lose halberd gain spear
Losing a halberd but gaining a spear
Losing something but gaining something of similar value. A halberd is rather similar to a spear - having a different blade on the end of a pole. No overall impact - both losses and gains.
Swings and roundabounts
程门立雪 [程門立雪]
Cheng door stand snow
Standing at Cheng?s door in the snow
Showing great respect for someone - usually a teacher or scholar. The story is that a great scholar accidentally left two students waiting for him for hours out in the snow.
屋漏偏逢连夜雨 [屋漏偏逢連夜雨]
house leak slanting happen upon continuous night rain
When the roof is leaking, there will be continuous nights of rain
Misfortunes tend to come all at once
When it rains, it pours
苟延残喘 [苟延殘喘]
temporarily prolong survive gasp
Lingering at last gasp
In the throes of dying. Making a final desperate action prior to dying.
At death's door
一丝不苟 [一絲不苟]
one thread not careless
To take care of every thread in a cloth
To be meticulous. To pay atttention to every detail
If a job is worth doing it is worth doing well
侯门似海 [侯門似海]
nobleman house appear sea
A noble?s house is as vast as the sea
A very tough task. A nobleman in ancient China would have a courtyard house with high walls and no easy entry. It was also hard to get any way to get an invite to visit such a noble. And so represents a high physical and social barrier.
Beyond your wildest dreams
得过且过 [得過且過]
contented get along yet live
Getting by
Muddling through life without great ambitions. Contended to just live from day to day.
Enough is as good as a feast
你死我活
you die I live
Fight to the death
To fight to the bitter end
Our proverbs come with full information. The modern Chinese characters are given first with links that give information on the character. If the phrase uses traditional characters these are shown in brackets and gray text. As proverbs are so old you will often see them written in the old form. The characters are followed by the proverb (Chengyu) in pinyin. Next, there is a crude character by character transliteration into English, followed by a more accurate English translation. If this is a Chinese proverb alluding to history the meaning may still not be clear in English, so the general meaning follows. Finally some proverbs have fairly direct English equivalents, if so the English proverb is included at the end.
Our translations are in need of improvement, so please let us know your ideas. For background on the types and history of proverbs please see our guide.
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