以柔克刚
Willows are weak yet they bind other wood. (Soft and fair goes far.)
以和为贵
A bad compromise is better than a good lawsuit.
以卵击石
What you do is throw a straw against the wind. (run one's head against a stone wall 1
一朝被蛇咬，十年怕草繩 Once bitten, twice shy. 一言既出，駟馬難追 A word spoken is past recalling. 一見鍾情 to fall in love at first sight
一箭雙鵰/一舉兩得 Kill two birds with one stone. 一寸光陰一寸金 Time is money.
一失足成千古恨 The error committed on impulse may turn out to be the sorrow of a whole life.
一將功名萬古枯 What millions died that Caesar might be great.
一年之計在於春，一日之計在於晨 Plan your year in spring and your day at dawn. 一人難稱百人意 You cannot please everyone. 一氣呵成 Never make two bites of a cherry.
一白遮三醜 A white complexion is powerful enough to hide seven faults. 一知半解 A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
一心一意 John is a person who always works with undivided attention.
一丘之貉 These people are cut from the same cloth./are tarred with the same brush. 一目了然 His words just leapt to the eye. Do you need me to explain it? 一帆風順 His business has gone off without a hitch.
一刻千金 You have to make good use of time. After all, every time counts. 一事無成 I am happy to know that all have ended in smoke about him. 一敗塗地 The outcome of the election just bit the dust.
一針見血 His comment on the current affairs always hits the right nail on the head.
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一清二楚 The accounts don't seem to be as clear as crystal.
一意孤行 That boy is always going her own way. He won't listen to his parents' advice. 一落千丈 My son's schoolwork has gone to pot. He really lets me down. 一鳴驚人 His performance at school really comes as a bombshell. 一諾千金 He never goes back on his word. He is as good as his word. 一時興起 Don't always do things by fits and snatches.
一蹴可及 You should know that it is impossible to make it at one stroke. 一籌莫展 I really have no idea what to do. Now I am at my wit's end.
一覽無遺 If you stand here looking down at the city. The wonderful scene will be in full view.
一竅不通 What you said is all Greek to me. 一視同仁 He treats everyone across the board. 一模一樣 These twins look as like as two peas.
一時興起 He does everything on the spur of the moment. 2
九死一生 to have a hair-breadth escape
九牛一毛 Compared with mine, his was simply a drop in the bucket. 人生如夢 Life is but a dream.
人生自古誰無死 Death comes to all men.
人生百歲古來稀 It is seldom that a man lives to be a hundred years old. 人定勝天 Man can conquer nature.
人不可貌相 Appearances are often deceptive./ Never judge a look by its cover. 人生而平等 All men are created equal.
人山人海 How many people are there in the stadium? Believe it or not, a sea of faces 人之常情 It's hamun nature for me to help those who need help.
人云亦云 Don't echo others' words. Sometimes you've got to find out the truth. 人去樓空 Regretful to say, when the master was absent, his mansion was dead. 人面獸心 He is cruel enought to kill that girl; he's really a wolf in sheep's clothing. 人言可畏 Always remember what I say to you. Opinion rules the world. (Fling dirt enought and some will stick.)
十年風水輪流轉 Every dog has its day.
十全十美 The show just leaves nothing to be desired. 十拿九穩 We have winning the game in the bag.
十萬火急 I am writing in hot haste to let you know that I will be there on time. 了無瓜葛 That politician claimed that he had nothing to do with that scandal.
力不從心 A:Can you do me a favor? B:Sorry, my spirit is willing, but my flesh is weak. 力挽狂瀾 He tried to stem the tide, but in vain. 入境隨俗 Do in Rome as the Romans do.
入木三分 It actually gave a vivid picture of cut the quick. (leave an indelible impression)
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七上八下 Don't talk to me now because I am greatly upse now. (with one's heart going pitapat)
七竅生煙 He was in a great fury (fuming with anger; in a great rage; terribly furious) and swore to get even with the opposite(跟對方報復).
七零八落 After the quake, the buildings went to rock and ruin.
八面玲瓏 In fact, she dances and sings all weathers. (her mill goes with all winds.) 3
三思而後行 Look before you leap. 三句不離本行 to talk shop
三個臭皮匠勝過一個諸葛亮 Two heads are better than one.
三番兩次 This guy is at me(找我碴) time after time.(time and again; time and time again.)
三緘其口 You'd better hold your peace, or you'll ask for trouble. 千鈞一髮 to hang by a hair thread / at the critical time
千錘百煉 A good nail does not fear the hammer. (steeled and tempered; gone through fire and water)
千載難逢 It only happens once in a blue moon. (It chances in an hour that happens not in seven years.)
千變萬化 The unexpected always happens.
大刀闊斧 It's said that the new executive will go the whole hog (reform in a big way.) 大同小異 The two articles are much of muchness ( be alike with minor difference ; There's not a pin to choose between the two ) in appearance and quality. 大言不慚 You really blow your own trumpet. (talk big; overshoot oneself)
大快朵頤 They are so delicious that I ate my fill. (gorge oneself; tuck in at; have [take] one's fill.)
大功告成 The big project finally came off with honors (bring home the bacon; come thoough with flying colors).
大智若愚 He who canot play the fool is not a wise man. 大器晚成 Rome was not built in a day.
大海撈針 Finding your lost contact lens is just like looking for a needle in a haystack. 山窮水盡 at the end of one's resources
山中無老虎，猴子稱大王 Among the blind the one-eyed is king./When the cat's away, the mice will pay.
小題大做 Make a mountain out of a molehill. ( fuss about trifles; a tempest in a teapot; a storm in a teacup; break a butterfly on a wheel ) 小洞不補，大來吃苦 A stitch in time saves nine. 小不忍則亂大謀 Patience is a virtue.
工欲善其事，必先利其器 You cannot make bricks without straw. 己所不欲勿施於人 Do unto others as you would be done. 仁者無敵 The benevolent have no enemy.
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工欲善其事必先利器 You cannot make bricks without straw. 亡羊補牢 Better late than never./ It's never too late to mend. 上氣不接下氣 I got out of breath when I climbed those stairs. 寸步不離 He always keeps book at his elbow. (keep close to) 口若懸河 He always talks nine words at once. (rattle on)
口是心非 He often speaks with his tongue in his cheek. (play a double game; say one thing and mean another )
口蜜腹劍 A honey tongue, a heart of gall. ( be nasty-nice; Bees that have honey in their mouths have stings in their tails. )
久別情疏 Out of sight, out of mind. (Far from eye, far from heart. Long absent, soon forgotten. Seldom seen, soon forgotten.) 4
不告而別 to take French leave
不要不自量力 Don't put a quarter into a pint pot.
不要厚此薄彼 Don't make fish of one and flesh of another. 不畏艱難 Take the bull by the horns.
不戰而屈人之兵 The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting. 不入虎穴焉得虎子 How can one obtain tiger-cubs without entering the tiger's lair. 不經一事，不長一智 Experience is the mother of wisdom.
不舍畫夜(24小時) Some convenience stores offer around the clock service. 不勝其煩 Your little brother is a pain in the neck.
不可一世 I really don't know why she is always as proud as a peacock. 不可救藥 His deep-rooted bad habits are simply beyond remedy.
不由自主 He is often absent-minded and dozed off in spite of himself in class.
不自量力 If he does so, he really goes beyond his depth. No one can beat that guy. (bite off more than one ches; overreach oneself;
不屈不撓 Although he has failed several times, he still keeps his chin up. (as steady as a rock; firm and unyielding; fight for tooth and nail; hang on by the eyelashes; stick to one's color)
不知死活 John is really heedless of consequences. I believe some day he will ask for trouble.
不知好歹 Take my advice into consideration. Don't know chalk from cheese. 不恥下問 To improve your studies, you got to be not above asking questions. 不假思索 He is good at speech. He often speaks impromptu. 不偏不倚 You should believe that the judge held the scales even.
不期而遇 I came across an old friend of mine in a department store. (chance to meet; bump into; come upon; meet...accidentally/unexpectedly/by chance/by accident) 不速之客 You are really a thick-skinned and gate-crasher.
不義之財 Don't be envious. Ill-gotten money comes easily and goes easily too.
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不謀而合 Do you see eye to eye with him on that plan?
不厭其煩 The teacher often takes the trouble to instruct his pupils.
不遺餘力 But the conspirators leave no avenue unexplored to re-establish contact with Britain.
不擇手段 He just did the work by hook or by crook.
不翼而飛 Did you see that plane? It seems that it just vanished from sight. 不聲不響 It's implite for one to be as quiet/silent/still as a mouse and left.
不識抬舉 Bring a cow to the hall and she will run to the byre. (Give him enough rope and he will hang himself.)
少年老成 to have an old head on young shoulders
少不更事 Although she is 20, she was still wet behind the ears in some ways. 天無絕人之路 God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb. 天下烏鴉一般黑 Crows are black all over the world.
天無絕人之路 God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb./ When one door shuts another opens.
天助自助者 Heaven helps those who help themselves.
天有不測風雲，人有旦夕禍福 It is the unexpected that always happens. 天衣無縫 These two ideas just fit like a glove.
天涯海角 I'll find him to the ends of the earth. (out-of-the-way places; the uttermost part of the earth)
天經地義 It's a matter of course to respect our elders. (a universal truth; it goes without saying that...)
毛遂自薦 to recommend one's own person
心正不怕雷打 A good conscience is a soft pillow. 心甘情願 He did all this of his own accord.
心不在焉 You look absent-minded; what's wrong?
心滿意足 The little boy sat there smiling, as happy as a clam.
心力交瘁 I don't know what to do. I just burned the candle at both ends.
心灰意冷 He was in black despair when he failed in the joint examination.(down in the bushes/in the dumps/lose heart
心有餘悸 A burned child dreads the fires. (Once bitten, twice shy)
心安理得 No matter what he said, I have the peace of mind. (have an easy conscience) 心血來潮 He did it just on the impulse of the moment.
心花怒放 My heart sings with joy because I receive over 300 letters a week from people around the world
心直口快 John is frank and out spoken, so I prefer to remain with him. 心滿意足 You can eat to your heart's content.
心猿意馬 He often carry fire in one hand and water in the other. 心曠神怡 Standing here feel on top of the world. 化干戈為玉帛 Bury the tomahwak(hatchet). 仁者無敵 The benevolent have no enemy.
今日事今日畢 Never put off till tomorrow what may be done today.
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