一五一十
yī wǔ yī shí
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1 lit. count by fives and tens (idiom); to narrate systematically and in full detail
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
一语道破
yī yǔ dào pò
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1 one word says it all (idiom)
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2 to hit the nail on the head
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3 to be pithy and correct
三五成群
sān wǔ chéng qún
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1 in groups of three or four (idiom)
三令五申
sān lìng wǔ shēn
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1 to order again and again (idiom)
三番五次
sān fān wǔ cì
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1 over and over again (idiom)
三纲五常
sān gāng wǔ cháng
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1 three principles and five virtues (idiom)
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2 the three rules (ruler guides subject, father guides son and husband guides wife) and five constant virtues of Confucianism (benevolence 仁, righteousness 義|义, propriety 禮|礼, wisdom 智 and fidelity 信)
不当家不知柴米贵
bù dāng jiā bù zhī chái mǐ guì
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1 a person who doesn't manage a household would not be aware how expensive it is (idiom)
不足为外人道
bù zú wéi wài rén dào
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1 no use to tell others
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2 let's keep this between ourselves (idiom)
二虎相斗,必有一伤
èr hǔ xiāng dòu , bì yǒu yī shāng
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1 lit. when two tigers fight, one is sure to be wounded (idiom)
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2 fig. if it comes to a fight, someone will get hurt
五十步笑百步
wǔ shí bù xiào bǎi bù
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1 the one who has retreated 50 steps laughs at the one who has retreated 100 steps (idiom)
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2 the pot calls the kettle black
五味俱全
wǔ wèi jù quán
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1 a complete gamut of all five flavors (idiom); every flavor under the sun
五味杂陈
wǔ wèi zá chén
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1 with complex feelings (idiom)
五彩缤纷
wǔ cǎi bīn fēn
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1 all the colors in profusion (idiom); a garish display
五百年前是一家
wǔ bǎi nián qián shì yī jiā
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1 five hundred years ago we were the same family (idiom) (said of persons with the same surname)
五色缤纷
wǔ sè bīn fēn
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1 all the colors in profusion (idiom); a garish display
五体投地
wǔ tǐ tóu dì
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1 to prostrate oneself in admiration (idiom); to adulate sb
五鬼闹判
wǔ guǐ nào pàn
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1 Five ghosts mock the judge, or Five ghosts resist judgment (title of folk opera, idiom); important personage mobbed by a crowd of ne'er-do-wells
人不可貌相,海水不可斗量
rén bù kě mào xiàng , hǎi shuǐ bù kě dǒu liáng
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1 you can't judge a person by appearance, just as you can't measure the sea with a pint pot (idiom)
仁义道德
rén yì dào dé
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1 compassion, duty, propriety and integrity (idiom); all the traditional virtues
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2 mainly used sarcastically, to mean hypocritical