1 lit. count by fives and tens (idiom); to narrate systematically and in full detail
三五成群
sān wǔ chéng qún
1 in groups of three or four (idiom)
三令五申
sān lìng wǔ shēn
1 to order again and again (idiom)
三番五次
sān fān wǔ cì
1 over and over again (idiom)
三纲五常
sān gāng wǔ cháng
1 three principles and five virtues (idiom)
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)
不识大体
bù shí dà tǐ
1 to fail to see the larger issue (idiom)
2 to fail to grasp the big picture
久仰大名
jiǔ yǎng dà míng
1 I have been looking forward to meeting you for a long time (idiom)
五十步笑百步
wǔ shí bù xiào bǎi bù
1 the one who has retreated 50 steps laughs at the one who has retreated 100 steps (idiom)
2 the pot calls the kettle black
五味俱全
wǔ wèi jù quán
1 a complete gamut of all five flavors (idiom); every flavor under the sun
五味杂陈
wǔ wèi zá chén
1 with complex feelings (idiom)
五彩缤纷
wǔ cǎi bīn fēn
1 all the colors in profusion (idiom); a garish display
五百年前是一家
wǔ bǎi nián qián shì yī jiā
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
1 all the colors in profusion (idiom); a garish display
五体投地
wǔ tǐ tóu dì
1 to prostrate oneself in admiration (idiom); to adulate sb
五鬼闹判
wǔ guǐ nào pàn
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
以小挤大
yǐ xiǎo jǐ dà
1 minor projects eclipse major ones (idiom)
伸手不见五指
shēn shǒu bù jiàn wǔ zhǐ
1 pitch-dark (idiom)
元恶大憝
yuán è dà duì
1 arch-criminal and archenemy (idiom)
冒大不韪
mào dà bù wěi
1 to face opprobrium (idiom)
吃大锅饭
chī dà guō fàn
1 lit. to eat from the common pot (idiom)
2 fig. to be rewarded the same, regardless of performance