ChinesePod

1 lit. to lead the life of a whore but still want a monument put up to one's chastity (idiom)
2 fig. to have bad intentions but still want a good reputation
3 to want to have one's cake and eat it too

左思右想

zuǒ sī yòu xiǎng

1 to turn over in one's mind (idiom); to think through from different angles
2 to ponder

思前想后

sī qián xiǎng hòu

1 to consider past cause and future effect (idiom); to think over the past and future
2 to ponder over reasons and connection

想入非非

xiǎng rù fēi fēi

1 to indulge in fantasy (idiom); to let one's imagination run wild

Sample Sentences

宋代文学家苏轼的《念奴娇》一词为宋词豪放派的代表作之一，又名《赤壁怀古》。上阙因景生情，从江水滔滔流去联想到消逝在历史长河中的英雄人物，人说赤壁为三国时代古战场，当年周公瑾在此，以弱胜强，击退曹魏，确立三国鼎立之势。

Sòng Dài wénxuéjiā Sū Shì de 《 niànnújiāo 》yī cí wèi Sòngcí háofàng pài de dàibiǎozuò zhīyī ，yòu míng 《 Chìbì huái gǔ 》。shàng què yīn jǐng shēng qíng ，cóng jiāng shuǐ tāotāo liú qù liánxiǎng dào xiāoshì zài lìshǐ cháng hé zhōng de yīngxióng rénwù ，rén shuō Chìbì wèi Sānguó shídài gǔ zhànchǎng ，dāngnián Zhōu Gōngjǐn zài cǐ ，yǐ ruò shèng strong ，jītuì Cáowèi ，quèlì Sānguó dǐnglì zhī shì 。

Song Dynasty literati Su Shi's ci poem 'The Charm of the Courtesan Niannu' is representative of the bold and unconstrained ci faction, and is also called 'Recalling the Past on the Red Cliffs'. The first section uses the landscape to set the tone, from the gurgling flow of the river we think of the historical figures who have disappeared in the river of time. It is said that the red cliffs were the site of an ancient battle during the Three Kingdoms Period. At that time Zhou Yu triumphed from a position of weakness here, forcing the Cao Wei to retreat and ensuring the continuance of the triumvirate states.

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原来如此，不过并不是所有的西方人都像你一样了解中国的龙文化，如果以“龙”作为奥运会的吉祥物，可能会让一些只知道Dragon的人产生不好的联想。

yuánláirúcǐ ，bùguò bìngbùshì suǒyǒu de xīfāngrén dōu xiàng nǐ yīyàng liǎojiě Zhōngguó de lóngwénhuà ，rúguǒ yǐ “lóng ”zuòwéi Àoyùnhuì de jíxiángwù ，kěnéng huì ràng yīxiē zhǐ zhīdào Dragon de rén chǎnshēng bùhǎo de liánxiǎng 。

As the Olympic mascot, maybe it would give some people who know about the Western dragon some bad mental associations.

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但是凡事都需要时间。我们的企业算到现在，发展还不到30年，能有这么一大批新兴企业逐渐拓展海外市场已经是很惊人的成就了。比如海尔，联想和华为，都在自己的领域成功地站稳脚跟，现在正在不断努力成为世界认可的品牌。

dànshì fánshì dōu xūyào shíjiān 。wǒmen de qǐyè suàn dào xiànzài ，fāzhǎn hái bùdào sānshí nián ，néng yǒu zhème yīdàpī xīnxīng qǐyè zhújiàn tuòzhǎn hǎiwài shìchǎng yǐjīng shì hěn jīngrén de chéngjiù le 。bǐrú hǎi ěr ，liánxiǎng hé huáwéi ，dōu zài zìjǐ de lǐngyù chénggōng de zhànwěn jiǎogēn ，xiànzài zhèngzài bùduàn nǔlì chéngwéi shìjiè rènkě de pǐnpái 。

But everything takes time. Up till today, our companies haven't even been developing for thirty years. Having a big group of flourishing companies gradually opening up foreign markets is a surprising achievement. For example, Haier, Lenovo and Huawei all have a firm foothold in their fields. Now, they are working hard to become world-recognized brands.

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对，所以自主创新就特别重要。我们的企业大多数还不具备领先的技术，但是他们在这方面的意识却已经很强了。这也是联想收购IBM个人电脑业务的一大原因。融会贯通，集众家所长来提升自己。

duì ，suǒyǐ zìzhǔ chuàngxīn jiù tèbié zhòngyào 。wǒmen de qǐyè dàduōshù hái bù jùbèi lǐngxiān de jìshù ，dànshì tāmen zàizhèfāngmiàn yìshì què yǐjīng hěn qiáng le 。zhè yěshì liánxiǎng shōugòu IBM gèrén diànnǎo yèwù de yī dà yuányīn 。rónghuìguàntōng ，jízhòngjiāsuǒcháng lái tíshēng zìjǐ 。

Yes, so self-driven innovation is extremely important. A lot of our companies don't have pioneering technologies, but they're already very aware of this aspect. This is a big reason that Lenovo wanted to buy IBM's PC business. They're learning by studying hard, and improving themselves by concentrating people's strengths.

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我也是。我觉得不仅是北京人，应该是所有中国人，一提起2008年的奥运会就会充满了激动与向往。我一出飞机场就感受到这种气氛，到处是“北京欢迎您”的标语和吉祥物“福娃”可爱的笑脸，让你立刻联想到北京人民和所有中国人的友好与热情。更有意义的是，我还专门去颐和园参加了奥运会的倒计时活动，真是一次难忘的经历。

wǒ yě shì 。wǒ juéde bùjǐn shì Běijīngrén ，yīnggāi shì suǒyǒu Zhōngguórén ，yī tíqǐ èrlínglíngbā nián de Àoyùnhuì jiù huì chōngmǎn le jīdòng yǔ xiàngwǎng 。wǒ yī chū fēijīchǎng jiù gǎnshòu dào zhèzhǒng qìfēn ，dàochù shì “Běijīng huānyíng nín ”de biāoyǔ hé jíxiángwù “Fúwá ”kěài de xiàoliǎn ，ràng nǐ lìkè liánxiǎng dào Běijīng rénmín hé suǒyǒu Zhōngguórén de yǒuhǎo yǔ rèqíng 。gèng yǒu yìyì de shì ，wǒ hái zhuānmén qù Yíhéyuán cānjiā le Àoyùnhuì de dàojìshí huódòng ，zhēnshì yī cì nánwàng de jīnglì 。

Me, too. I think it's not just Beijingers-- probably all Chinese people get full of excitement and expectation at the mention of the 2008 Olympics. As soon as I got off the airport I felt this atmosphere. ''Beijing Welcomes You" banners and the cute, laughing faces of the ''Fuwa" mascots are everywhere. It makes you think immediately of the friendliness and enthusiasm of the people of Beijing and of China. Even more significant, I made a special trip to the Summer Palace to take part in a countdown ceremony for the Games. It was really an unforgettable experience.

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最近还有一个热点，就是韩国电视台SBS。这三个字母是汉城广播系统的英语缩写，但中国人联想到的却是京骂。

zuìjìn hái yǒu yī ge rèdiǎn ，jiùshì Hánguó diànshìtái SBS 。zhè sān ge zìmǔ shì hànchéng guǎngbō xìtǒng de yīngyǔsuōxiě ，dàn zhōngguórén liánxiǎng dào de què shì jīngmà 。

Lately there's another hot topic-- the Korean National TV station SBS. These three letters stand for the English abbreviation Seoul Broadcasting System. But they make Chinese people think of a filthy word.

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我会说一些词语，你只要告诉我联想到什么就行了。要完全放松。想到什么就说什么。

wǒ huì shuō yīxiē cíyǔ ，nǐ zhǐyào gàosu wǒ liánxiǎng dào shénme jiù xíng le 。yào wánquán fàngsōng 。xiǎngdào shénme jiù shuō shénme 。

I'll say a word, and you just tell me what you associate it with. Relax completely. Just say whatever comes to mind.

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今天我来考考你的自由联想。

jīntiān wǒ lái kǎokao nǐ de zìyóu liánxiǎng 。

Today I'm going to test your free associations.

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