一失足成千古恨
yī shī zú chéng qiān gǔ hèn
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1 a single slip may cause everlasting sorrow (idiom)
一成不变
yī chéng bù biàn
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1 nothing much changes (idiom); always the same
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2 stuck in a rut
一语成谶
yī yǔ chéng chèn
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1 (idiom) to have one's words turn out to be (tragically) prophetic
一针见血
yī zhēn jiàn xiě
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1 lit. to draw blood on the first prick (idiom)
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2 fig. to hit the nail on the head
一雨成秋
yī yǔ chéng qiū
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1 a sudden shower towards the end of summer brings an abrupt arrival of autumn (idiom)
三五成群
sān wǔ chéng qún
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1 in groups of three or four (idiom)
三人成虎
sān rén chéng hǔ
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1 three men talking makes a tiger (idiom); repeated rumor becomes a fact
三个臭皮匠,合成一个诸葛亮
sān gè chòu pí jiang , hé chéng yī gè Zhū gě Liàng
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1 lit. three ignorant cobblers add up to a genius (idiom); fig. collective wisdom
不以规矩,不能成方圆
bù yǐ guī ju , bù néng chéng fāng yuán
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1 without rules, nothing can be done (idiom, from Mencius); one must follow some rules
不到黄河心不死
bù dào Huáng Hé xīn bù sǐ
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1 lit. not to stop until one reaches the Yellow River (idiom)
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2 fig. to persevere until one reaches one's goal
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3 to keep going while some hope is left
不成功便成仁
bù chéng gōng biàn chéng rén
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1 to succeed or die trying (idiom)
不成体统
bù chéng tǐ tǒng
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1 not according with decorum (idiom); scandalous
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2 bad form
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3 unacceptable behavior
不打不成器
bù dǎ bù chéng qì
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1 spare the rod and spoil the child (idiom)
不打不成才
bù dǎ bù chéng cái
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1 spare the rod and spoil the child (idiom)
不打不成相识
bù dǎ bù chéng xiāng shí
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1 don't fight, won't make friends (idiom); an exchange of blows may lead to friendship
久病成良医
jiǔ bìng chéng liáng yī
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1 long illness makes the patient into a good doctor (idiom)
人往高处走,水往低处流
rén wǎng gāo chù zǒu , shuǐ wǎng dī chù liú
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1 man seeks his way up just as water seeks its way down (idiom)
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2 one should constantly strive to make progress
付之东流
fù zhī dōng liú
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1 to commit to the waters (idiom); to lose sth irrevocably
信口开河
xìn kǒu kāi hé
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1 to speak without thinking (idiom)
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2 to blurt sth out
偷鸡不成蚀把米
tōu jī bù chéng shí bǎ mǐ
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1 lit. to try to steal a chicken only to end up losing the rice used to lure it (idiom)
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2 fig. to try to gain an advantage only to end up worse off
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3 to go for wool and come back shorn