Chinese Idioms

• 班门弄斧 (bān mén nòng fǔ)

  To display one's skills before an expert
• 闭门造车 (bì mén zào chē)

  To be overly confident
• 草木皆兵 (cǎo mù jiē bīng)

  Being panicked, believing everything is an enemy
• 调虎离山 (diào hǔ lí shān)

  To lure an enemy away from his territory
• 东施效颦(dōng shì xiào pìn)

  Foolishly copying behavior, not understood
• 对牛弹琴 (duì niú tán qín)

  Trying to reason with someone unreasonable
• 囫囵吞枣 (hú lún tūn zǎo) [EXTRA]

  To accept info without thinking about it
• 画饼充饥 (huà bǐng chōng jī)

  Unrealistic solutions to problems
• 画蛇添足 Huàshétiānzú[EXTRA]


  To overdo; add unnecessary things that ruin the effect
• 惊弓之鸟 (jīng gōng zhī niǎo)

  Frightened
• 井底之蛙 (Jǐngdǐzhīwā) [EXTRA]


  Doesn't see the bigger picture
• 滥竽充数 (làn yú chōng shù)

  People who don't have real skills to mix in with the pros
• 毛遂自荐 (máo suì zì jiàn)

  Someone volunteering themselves
• 门庭若市 (mén tíng ruò shì)

  A courtyard as crowded as a marketplace
• 名落孙山 (míng luò sūn shān)

  Draw attention away from a failure
• 破釜沉舟 (pò fǔ chén zhōu)

  Doing whatever it takes to succeed
• 杞人忧天 (qǐ rén yōu tiān)

  Unreasonable, groundless fears or worries
• 黔驴技穷 (qián lǘ jì qióng)

  To exhaust one's limited abilities
• 塞翁失马 (sài wēng shī mǎ)

  A blessing in disguise
• 完璧归赵 (wán bì guī zhào)

  Returning something valuable to its rightful owner
• 三顾茅庐 (sān gù máo lú)

  Repeatly asking for help
• 守株待兔 (shǒu zhū dài tù)

  Wait for a miracle without doing the work
• 四面楚歌 (sì miàn chǔ gē)

  To be surrounded and isolated in a difficult situation
• 天衣无缝 (tiān yī wú fèng)

  Something seamlessly perfect or flawless (tiān yī wú fèng)
• 同舟共济 (tóng zhōu gòng jì)

  To cooperate and overcome difficulties together
• 望梅止渴 (wàng méi zhǐ kě)

  To quench your need for something using substitution
• 卧薪尝胆 (wò xīn cháng dǎn)


  To endure hardships to accomplish ambitions
• 胸有成竹 (Xiōngyǒuchéngzhú)


  To have a well-thought-out plan
• 掩耳盗铃 (Yǎn'ěrdàolíng)

  A futile attempt to deceive oneself or others
• 愚公移山 (Yúgōngyíshān)


  Trying to reason with an unreasonable person
• 朝三暮四 (zhāo sān mù sì)

  someone who is inconsistent or indecisive
• 负荆请罪 (fù jīng qǐng zuì)


  Humbly apologize or seek forgiveness by accepting blame or punishment
• 拔苗助长 (bá miáo zhù zhǎng)

  To spoil things by overeagerness or impatience
• 螳臂当车 (táng bì dāng chē)

  To attempt the impossible