ChinesePod

1 lit. use others' strengths to make up for one's weak points (idiom from Mencius)
2 to use this in place of that
3 what you lose on the swings, you win on the roundabouts

吃人家的嘴软，拿人家的手短

chī rén jiā de zuǐ ruǎn , ná rén jiā de shǒu duǎn

1 lit. the mouth that has been fed by others is soft, the hand that has received doesn't reach (idiom)
2 fig. one is partial to those from whom presents have been accepted

张家长，李家短

Zhāng jiā cháng , Lǐ jiā duǎn

1 lit. the Zhangs are better off than the Lis (idiom); to gossip about the neighbors

截长补短

jié cháng bǔ duǎn

1 take from the long to supplement the short (idiom)
2 to offset each other's deficiencies
3 to complement each other

扬长避短

yáng cháng bì duǎn

1 to foster strengths and avoid weaknesses (idiom)
2 to play to one's strengths

Sample Sentences

有啊。很多城市都有救助站条件还很不错。为乞丐提供短暂的帮助，然后把他们送回原籍。但是好多人都不愿意去。

yǒu ā 。hěn duō chéngshì dōu yǒu jiùzhùzhàn tiáojiàn hái hěn bùcuò 。wèi qǐgài tígōng duǎnzàn de bāngzhù ，ránhòu bǎ tāmen sònghuí yuánjí 。dànshì hǎo duō rén dōu bù yuànyi qù 。

Yes. A lot of cities have aid stations where the conditions are pretty good. They provide temporary help for beggars, and then return them to their home regions. But a lot of people don't want to go back.

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每一道短暂的光阴

měiyī dào duǎnzàn de guāngyīn

For brief moments at a time

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这段时间虽然短暂，却让我进一步了解了中国，同时大会也给了我一个非常宝贵的机会来介绍我们公司的服务。

zhè duàn shíjiān suīrán duǎnzàn ，què ràng wǒ jìnyībù liǎojiě le Zhōngguó ，tóngshí dàhuì yě gěi le wǒ yī ge fēicháng bǎoguì de jīhuì lái jièshào wǒmen gōngsī de fúwù 。

Although the time has been short, I have been able to further acquaint myself with China. At the same time, this conference has given me a very precious opportunity to introduce our company’s services to you.

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