一人得道,鸡犬升天
yī rén dé dào , jī quǎn shēng tiān
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1 lit. when a man achieves the Dao, his poultry and dogs rise to Heaven (idiom)
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2 fig. to ride on sb else's success
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3 Once one man gets a government position, all his cronies get in too
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4 Once sb has cracked the problem, every Tom, Dick and Harry can do it
一言既出,驷马难追
yī yán jì chū , sì mǎ nán zhuī
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1 lit. once said, a team of horses cannot unsay it (idiom); a promise must be kept
一马平川
yī mǎ píng chuān
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1 flat land one could gallop straight across (idiom); wide expanse of flat country
三马同槽
sān mǎ tóng cáo
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1 three horses at the same trough (idiom, alluding to Sima Yi 司馬懿|司马懿[Sī mǎ Yì] and his two sons); conspirators under the same roof
中箭落马
zhòng jiàn luò mǎ
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1 lit. to be struck by an arrow and fall from one's horse
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2 to suffer a serious setback (idiom)
人仰马翻
rén yǎng mǎ fān
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1 to suffer a crushing defeat (idiom)
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2 in a pitiful state
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3 in a complete mess
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4 to roll (with laughter)
人喊马嘶
rén hǎn mǎ sī
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1 lit. people shouting and horses neighing (idiom)
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2 fig. tumultuous
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3 hubbub
人困马乏
rén kùn mǎ fá
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1 riders tired and horses weary (idiom)
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2 worn out
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3 exhausted
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4 spent
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5 fatigued
人有失手,马有失蹄
rén yǒu shī shǒu , mǎ yǒu shī tí
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1 lit. just as humans make mistakes, so can a horse stumble (idiom)
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2 fig. everyone makes mistakes
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3 even the best fall down sometimes
借刀杀人
jiè dāo shā rén
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1 to lend sb a knife to kill sb
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2 to get sb else to do one's dirty work
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3 to attack using the strength of another (idiom)
偷鸡不成蚀把米
tōu jī bù chéng shí bǎ mǐ
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1 lit. to try to steal a chicken only to end up losing the rice used to lure it (idiom)
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2 fig. to try to gain an advantage only to end up worse off
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3 to go for wool and come back shorn
偷鸡摸狗
tōu jī mō gǒu
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1 to imitate the dog and steal chicken (idiom)
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2 to pilfer
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3 to dally with women
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4 to have affairs
兵强马壮
bīng qiáng mǎ zhuàng
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1 lit. strong soldiers and sturdy horses (idiom)
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2 fig. a well-trained and powerful army
兵荒马乱
bīng huāng mǎ luàn
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1 soldiers munity and troops rebel (idiom); turmoil and chaos of war
兵马未动,粮草先行
bīng mǎ wèi dòng , liáng cǎo xiān xíng
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1 before the troops move, fodder and provisions go first (idiom); logistics comes before military maneuvers
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2 an army marches on its stomach
割鸡焉用牛刀
gē jī yān yòng niú dāo
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1 lit. why use a pole-ax to slaughter a chicken? (idiom)
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2 fig. to waste effort on a trifling matter
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3 also written 殺雞焉用牛刀|杀鸡焉用牛刀[shā jī yān yòng niú dāo]
北叟失马
běi sǒu shī mǎ
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1 lit. the old man lost his horse, but it all turned out for the best (idiom)
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2 fig. a blessing in disguise
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3 it's an ill wind that blows nobody any good
千军万马
qiān jūn wàn mǎ
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1 magnificent army with thousands of men and horses (idiom); impressive display of manpower
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2 all the King's horses and all the King's men
千里马常有,而伯乐不常有
qiān lǐ mǎ cháng yǒu , ér Bó Lè bù cháng yǒu
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1 lit. there are many swift horses, but very few who can spot them (idiom)
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2 fig. many have talent, but few can recognize talent when they see it
卸磨杀驴
xiè mò shā lu:2
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1 lit. to kill the donkey when the grinding is done (idiom)
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2 to get rid of sb once he has ceased to be useful