上有老下有小
shàng yǒu lǎo xià yǒu xiǎo
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1 lit. above are the elderly, below are the young (idiom)
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2 fig. to have to take care of both one's aging parents and one's children
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3 sandwich generation
不拘小节
bù jū xiǎo jié
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1 to not bother about trifles (idiom)
不由自主
bù yóu zì zhǔ
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1 can't help; involuntarily (idiom)
以小人之心,度君子之腹
yǐ xiǎo rén zhī xīn , duó jūn zǐ zhī fù
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1 to gauge the heart of a gentleman with one's own mean measure (idiom)
以小挤大
yǐ xiǎo jǐ dà
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1 minor projects eclipse major ones (idiom)
六神无主
liù shén wú zhǔ
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1 out of one's wits (idiom)
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2 distracted
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3 stunned
冤有头,债有主
yuān yǒu tóu , zhài yǒu zhǔ
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1 for every grievance someone is responsible, for every debt there is a debtor (idiom)
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2 when settling disputes one should not involve third parties
升斗小民
shēng dǒu xiǎo mín
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1 poor people (idiom)
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2 those who live from hand to mouth
反客为主
fǎn kè wéi zhǔ
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1 lit. the guest acts as host (idiom); fig. to turn from passive to active behavior
名花有主
míng huā yǒu zhǔ
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1 the girl is already taken (idiom)
喧宾夺主
xuān bīn duó zhǔ
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1 lit. the voice of the guest overwhelms that of the host (idiom)
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2 fig. a minor player upstages the main attraction
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3 minor details obscure the main point
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4 the sauce is better than the fish
因小失大
yīn xiǎo shī dà
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1 to save a little only to lose a lot (idiom)
大事化小,小事化了
dà shì huà xiǎo , xiǎo shì huà liǎo
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1 to turn big problems into small ones, and small problems into no problems at all (idiom)
大材小用
dà cái xiǎo yòng
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1 using a talented person in an insignificant position (idiom)
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2 a sledgehammer to crack a nut
大处着眼,小处着手
dà chù zhuó yǎn , xiǎo chù zhuó shǒu
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1 think of the big picture, start with the little things (idiom)
大街小巷
dà jiē xiǎo xiàng
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1 great streets and small alleys (idiom); everywhere in the city
大惊小怪
dà jīng xiǎo guài
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1 to make a fuss about nothing (idiom)
小不忍则乱大谋
xiǎo bù rěn zé luàn dà móu
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1 (idiom) great plans can be ruined by just a touch of impatience
小人得志
xiǎo rén dé zhì
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1 lit. a vile character flourishes (idiom)
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2 fig. an inferior person gets into a position of power, becoming conceited and arrogant
小作怡情,大作伤身
xiǎo zuò yí qíng , dà zuò shāng shēn
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1 a little bit of it does one good, but carried to excess it's harmful (idiom)