一问三不知
yī wèn sān bù zhī
-
1 lit. to reply "don't know" whatever the question (idiom)
-
2 fig. absolutely no idea of what's going on
-
3 complete ignorance
一改故辙
yī gǎi gù zhé
-
1 complete change from the old rut (idiom); dramatic change of direction
-
2 a volte-face
-
3 to change old practices
一望而知
yī wàng ér zhī
-
1 to be evident at a glance (idiom)
一无所知
yī wú suǒ zhī
-
1 not knowing anything at all (idiom); completely ignorant
-
2 without an inkling
一知半解
yī zhī bàn jiě
-
1 lit. to know one and understand half (idiom); a smattering of knowledge
-
2 dilettante
-
3 amateur
一叶知秋
yī yè zhī qiū
-
1 lit. the falling of one leaf heralds the coming of autumn (idiom)
-
2 fig. a small sign can indicate a great trend
-
3 a straw in the wind
不当家不知柴米贵
bù dāng jiā bù zhī chái mǐ guì
-
1 a person who doesn't manage a household would not be aware how expensive it is (idiom)
不知丁董
bù zhī Dīng Dǒng
-
1 forgetting the fate of Ding and Dong (idiom)
-
2 unheeding the lessons of the past
不知好歹
bù zhī hǎo dǎi
-
1 unable to differentiate good from bad (idiom)
-
2 not to know what's good for one
-
3 unable to recognize others' good intentions
不知所措
bù zhī suǒ cuò
-
1 not knowing what to do (idiom); at one's wits' end
-
2 embarrassed and at a complete loss
不知死活
bù zhī sǐ huó
-
1 to act recklessly (idiom)
不知轻重
bù zhī qīng zhòng
-
1 lit. not knowing what's important (idiom); no appreciation of the gravity of things
-
2 naive
-
3 doesn't know who's who
-
4 no sense of priorities
不知进退
bù zhī jìn tuì
-
1 not knowing when to come or leave (idiom); with no sense of propriety
他乡遇故知
tā xiāng yù gù zhī
-
1 meeting an old friend in a foreign place (idiom)
依然如故
yī rán rú gù
-
1 back to where we were (idiom); absolutely no improvement
-
2 Things haven't changed at all.
依然故我
yī rán gù wǒ
-
1 to be one's old self (idiom)
-
2 to be unchanged
-
3 (derog.) to be stuck in one's ways
只知其一，不知其二
zhǐ zhī qí yī , bù zhī qí èr
-
1 to know the first, but not know the second (idiom); only partial information
司马昭之心路人皆知
Sī mǎ Zhāo zhī xīn lù rén jiē zhī
-
1 lit. Sima Zhao's intentions are obvious to everyone (idiom)
-
2 fig. an open secret
吐故纳新
tǔ gù nà xīn
-
1 lit. to breathe out stale air and breathe in fresh (idiom, from Zhuangzi 庄子); fig. to get rid of the old and bring in the new
塞翁失马安知非福
sài wēng shī mǎ ān zhī fēi fú
-
1 the old man lost his mare, but it all turned out for the best (idiom); fig. a blessing in disguise
-
2 it's an ill wind that blows nobody any good
-
3 also written 塞翁失馬焉知非福|塞翁失马焉知非福