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纸老虎
zhǐ lǎo hǔ
Pinyin
Definition
纸老虎
-
zhǐ lǎo hǔ
paper tiger
Related Words
(20)
老
lǎo
1
prefix used before the surname of a person or a numeral indicating the order of birth of the children in a family or to indicate affection or familiarity
2
old (of people)
3
venerable (person)
4
experienced
5
of long standing
6
always
7
all the time
8
of the past
9
very
10
outdated
11
(of meat etc) tough
老公
lǎo gōng
1
(coll.) husband
老婆
lǎo pó
1
(coll.) wife
老妈
lǎo mā
1
mother
2
mom
老家
lǎo jiā
1
native place
2
place of origin
3
home state or region
老师
lǎo shī
1
teacher
2
CL:個|个[gè],位[wèi]
老板
lǎo bǎn
1
variant of 老闆|老板[lǎo bǎn]
老爸
lǎo bà
1
father
2
dad
偕老
xié lǎo
1
to grow old together
古老
gǔ lǎo
1
ancient
2
old
3
age-old
回老家
huí lǎo jiā
1
to go back to one's roots
2
to return to one's native place
3
by ext. to join one's ancestors (i.e. to die)
壁虎
bì hǔ
1
gecko
2
house lizard
天荒地老
tiān huāng dì lǎo
1
until the end of time (idiom)
年老
nián lǎo
1
aged
生龙活虎
shēng lóng huó hǔ
1
lit. lively dragon and animated tiger (idiom)
2
fig. vigorous and lively
白头偕老
bái tóu xié lǎo
1
(to live together until the) white hairs of old age (idiom); to live to a ripe old age in conjugal bliss
2
until death do us part
白头到老
bái tóu dào lǎo
1
(to live together until the) white hairs of old age (idiom); to live to a ripe old age in conjugal bliss
2
until death do us part
百老汇
Bǎi lǎo huì
1
Broadway (New York City)
老人
lǎo rén
1
old man or woman
2
the elderly
3
one's aged parents or grandparents
老人家
lǎo rén jiā
1
polite term for old woman or man
Idioms
(20)
一山不容二虎
yī shān bù róng èr hǔ
1
lit. the mountain can't have two tigers (idiom)
2
fig. this town ain't big enough for the two of us
3
(of two rivals) to be fiercely competitive
一粒老鼠屎坏了一锅粥
yī lì lǎo shǔ shǐ huài le yī guō zhōu
1
lit. a piece of rat feces spoiled the whole pot of congee (idiom)
2
fig. one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch
一颗老鼠屎坏了一锅汤
yī kē lǎo shǔ shǐ huài le yī guō tāng
1
lit. a piece of rat feces spoiled the whole pot of soup (idiom)
2
fig. one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch
三人成虎
sān rén chéng hǔ
1
three men talking makes a tiger (idiom); repeated rumor becomes a fact
上有老下有小
shàng yǒu lǎo xià yǒu xiǎo
1
lit. above are the elderly, below are the young (idiom)
2
fig. to have to take care of both one's aging parents and one's children
3
sandwich generation
不入虎穴,焉得虎子
bù rù hǔ xué , yān dé hǔ zǐ
1
How do you catch the tiger cub without entering the tiger's lair? (idiom); Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
不听老人言,吃亏在眼前
bù tīng lǎo rén yán , chī kuī zài yǎn qián
1
(idiom) ignore your elders at your peril
九牛二虎之力
jiǔ niú èr hǔ zhī lì
1
tremendous strength (idiom)
二虎相斗,必有一伤
èr hǔ xiāng dòu , bì yǒu yī shāng
1
lit. when two tigers fight, one is sure to be wounded (idiom)
2
fig. if it comes to a fight, someone will get hurt
伴君如伴虎
bàn jūn rú bàn hǔ
1
being close to the sovereign can be as perilous as lying with a tiger (idiom)
两虎相争
liǎng hǔ xiāng zhēng
1
two tigers fighting (idiom); fierce contest between evenly matched adversaries
两虎相争,必有一伤
liǎng hǔ xiāng zhēng , bì yǒu yī shāng
1
if two tigers fight, one will get injured (idiom)
2
if you start a war, someone is bound to get hurt
两虎相斗
liǎng hǔ xiāng dòu
1
two tigers fight (idiom); fig. a dispute between two powerful adversaries
2
a battle of the giants
两虎相斗,必有一伤
liǎng hǔ xiāng dòu , bì yǒu yī shāng
1
when two tigers fight, one will get injured (idiom)
2
if it comes to a fight, someone will get hurt.
初生之犊不畏虎
chū shēng zhī dú bù wèi hǔ
1
lit. a new-born calf has no fear of the tiger (idiom)
2
fig. the fearlessness of youth
初生牛犊不怕虎
chū shēng niú dú bù pà hǔ
1
lit. newborn calves do not fear tigers (idiom)
2
fig. the young are fearless
前怕狼后怕虎
qián pà láng hòu pà hǔ
1
lit. to fear the wolf in front and the tiger behind (idiom)
2
fig. to be full of needless fears
3
reds under the beds
前门打虎,后门打狼
qián mén dǎ hǔ , hòu mén dǎ láng
1
to beat a tiger from the front door, only to have a wolf come in at the back (idiom); fig. facing one problem after another
前门拒虎,后门进狼
qián mén jù hǔ , hòu mén jìn láng
1
to beat a tiger from the front door, only to have a wolf come in at the back (idiom); fig. facing one problem after another
势成骑虎
shì chéng qí hǔ
1
if you ride a tiger, it's hard to get off (idiom); fig. impossible to stop halfway
Sample Sentences
有的人看起来很强壮,但是他经常生病,你可以说他就是个纸老虎。
yǒude rén kàn qǐlái hěn qiángzhuàng ,dànshì tā jīngcháng shēngbìng ,nǐ kěyǐ shuō tā jiùshì ge zhǐlǎohǔ 。
Some people seem very strong, but he's often sick. You could say that he’s a paper tiger.
Play
Intermediate
Go to Lesson
纸老虎
zhǐlǎohǔ
paper tiger, someone who is not as tough as he/she appears to be
Play
Intermediate
Go to Lesson
哈哈,原来林峰是纸老虎啊!平时那么神气,关键时刻就腿软啦!哈哈!
hāhā ,yuánlái Lín Fēng shì zhǐlǎohǔ a !píngshí nàme shénqì ,guānjiàn shíkè jiù tuǐ ruǎn la !hāhā !
Ha ha, Lin Feng is all hat and no cattle! He's usually so cocky, but when crunch time comes, his legs turn to jelly. Ha ha!
Play
Upper Intermediate
Go to Lesson