Common Chinese Chengyu
Four-character Chinese idioms, ranked by how often they appear in the dictionary, with pinyin and English translation.
| Chinese | Pinyin | Translation | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 莫名其妙 | (idiom) baffling / bizarre / without rhyme or reason / inexplicable | syn | |
| 不可思议不可思議 | inconceivable (idiom) / unimaginable / unfathomable | syn | |
| 小心翼翼 | cautious and solemn (idiom) / very carefully / prudent / gently and cautiously | syn | |
| 前所未有 | (idiom) unprecedented | syn | |
| 与众不同與眾不同 | to stand out from the masses (idiom) | syn | |
| 不由自主 | (idiom) can't help but / involuntarily | syn | |
| 不知所措 | not knowing what to do (idiom) / at one's wits' end / embarrassed and at a complete loss | syn | |
| 成千上万成千上萬 | lit. by the thousands and tens of thousands (idiom) / untold numbers / innumerable / thousands upon thousands | syn | |
| 大吃一惊大吃一驚 | to have a surprise (idiom) / shocked or startled / gobsmacked | syn | |
| 理所当然理所當然 | as it should be by rights (idiom) / proper and to be expected as a matter of course / inevitable and right | syn | |
| 一模一样一模一樣 | exactly the same (idiom) / carbon copy / also pr. [yi1 mo2 yi1 yang4] | syn | |
| 迫不及待 | (idiom) unable to hold oneself back / eager to do sth without delay | syn | |
| 目瞪口呆 | dumbstruck (idiom) / stupefied / stunned | syn | |
| 乱七八糟亂七八糟 | (idiom) chaotic / in disorder / muddled | syn | |
| 实事求是實事求是 | lit. to seek truth from facts (idiom) / fig. to be practical and realistic | syn | |
| 随心所欲隨心所欲 | (idiom) to follow one's heart's desires / to do as one pleases | syn | |
| 独一无二獨一無二 | unique and unmatched (idiom) / unrivalled / nothing compares with it | syn | |
| 情不自禁 | (idiom) cannot refrain from / cannot help / cannot but | syn | |
| 可想而知 | (idiom) (it) goes without saying / can well be imagined | ||
| 不约而同不約而同 | (idiom) (of two or more people) to take the same action without prior consultation / (usu. used adverbially) all (or both) of them, independently / as if by prior agreement | syn | |
| 不以为然不以為然 | not to accept as correct (idiom) / to object / to disapprove / to take exception to | syn | |
| 无能为力無能為力 | (idiom) powerless to do anything about it | syn | |
| 脱颖而出脫穎而出 | to reveal one's talent (idiom) / to rise above others / to distinguish oneself | syn | |
| 胡思乱想胡思亂想 | to indulge in flights of fancy (idiom) / to let one's imagination run wild | syn | |
| 一网打尽一網打盡 | lit. to catch everything in the one net (idiom) / fig. to scoop up the whole lot / to capture them all in one go | syn | |
| 一如既往 | just as in the past (idiom) / as before / continuing as always | syn | |
| 不顾一切不顧一切 | (idiom) to disregard all negative considerations / to cast aside all concerns | syn | |
| 淋漓尽致淋漓盡致 | lit. extreme saturation (idiom) / fig. vividly and thoroughly / in great detail / without restraint / (of a performance) brilliant | syn | |
| 千方百计千方百計 | lit. thousand ways, a hundred plans (idiom) / by every possible means | syn | |
| 难以置信難以置信 | (idiom) hard to believe / incredible | syn | |
| 惊心动魄驚心動魄 | (idiom) heart-stopping / hair-raising / breathtaking | syn | |
| 新陈代谢新陳代謝 | metabolism (biology) / the new replaces the old (idiom) | ||
| 一见钟情一見鍾情 | to fall in love at first sight (idiom) | syn | |
| 自由自在 | free and easy (idiom) / carefree / leisurely | syn | |
| 一目了然一目瞭然 | obvious at a glance (idiom) | syn | |
| 咬牙切齿咬牙切齒 | gnashing one's teeth (idiom) / displaying extreme anger / fuming with rage between gritted teeth | syn | |
| 哭笑不得 | lit. not to know whether to laugh or cry (idiom) / both funny and extremely embarrassing / between laughter and tears | syn | |
| 层出不穷層出不窮 | more and more emerge / innumerable succession / breeding like flies (idiom) | syn | |
| 泪流满面淚流滿面 | cheeks streaming with tears (idiom) | syn | |
| 无影无踪無影無蹤 | to disappear without trace (idiom) | syn | |
| 出人意料 | unexpected (idiom) / surprising | syn | |
| 一无所有一無所有 | not having anything at all (idiom) / utterly lacking / without two sticks to rub together | syn | |
| 刻骨铭心刻骨銘心 | lit. carved in bones and engraved in the heart (idiom) / fig. etched in one's memory / unforgettable | syn | |
| 无声无息無聲無息 | wordless and uncommunicative (idiom) / without speaking / taciturn / not providing any news | syn | |
| 自以为是自以為是 | to believe oneself infallible (idiom) / to be opinionated | syn | |
| 出乎意料 | beyond expectation (idiom) / unexpected | syn | |
| 一无所知一無所知 | (idiom) not knowing anything at all / completely ignorant | syn | |
| 惊天动地驚天動地 | world-shaking (idiom) | syn | |
| 不动声色不動聲色 | not a word or movement (idiom) / remaining calm and collected / not batting an eyelid | syn | |
| 源源不断源源不斷 | a steady flow (idiom) / an unending stream | syn | |
| 一言不发一言不發 | to not say a word (idiom) | syn | |
| 一塌糊涂一塌糊塗 | muddled and completely collapsing (idiom) / in an awful condition / complete shambles / a total mess | syn | |
| 显而易见顯而易見 | clearly and easy to see (idiom) / obviously / clearly / it goes without saying | syn | |
| 应有尽有應有盡有 | everything that should be here is here (idiom) / all one can think of is on hand / to have all one needs | syn | |
| 取而代之 | (idiom) to replace / to supersede / to take its (or her etc) place | syn | |
| 若无其事若無其事 | (idiom) as if nothing had happened / calm and composed / nonchalant | syn | |
| 梦寐以求夢寐以求 | lit. to yearn for sth even in one's dreams (idiom) / fig. to deeply long for / to covet | syn | |
| 天长地久天長地久 | enduring while the world lasts (idiom) / eternal | syn | |
| 脱口而出脫口而出 | (idiom) to blurt out / to let slip (an indiscreet remark) | ||
| 铺天盖地鋪天蓋地 | lit. hiding the sky and covering the earth (idiom) / fig. earth-shattering / omnipresent / of universal importance | syn | |
| 后顾之忧後顧之憂 | fears of trouble in the rear (idiom) / family worries (obstructing freedom of action) / worries about the future consequences / often in negative expressions, meaning "no worries about anything" | ||
| 当务之急當務之急 | (idiom) top priority job / a matter of the greatest urgency | ||
| 海阔天空海闊天空 | wide sea and sky (idiom) / boundless open vistas / the whole wide world / chatting about everything under the sun | syn | |
| 循序渐进循序漸進 | in sequence, step by step (idiom) / to make steady progress incrementally | syn | |
| 兴高采烈興高采烈 | happy and excited (idiom) / in high spirits / in great delight | syn | |
| 得心应手得心應手 | lit. what the heart wishes, the hand accomplishes (idiom) skilled at the job / entirely in one's element / going smoothly and easily | syn | |
| 想方设法想方設法 | to think up every possible method (idiom) / to devise ways and means / to try this, that and the other | syn | |
| 意料之外 | (idiom) contrary to expectation / unexpected | syn | |
| 一生一世 | a whole lifetime (idiom) / all my life | syn | |
| 措手不及 | no time to deal with it (idiom) / caught unprepared | syn | |
| 理直气壮理直氣壯 | in the right and self-confident (idiom) / bold and confident with justice on one's side / to have the courage of one's convictions / just and forceful | syn | |
| 甜言蜜语甜言蜜語 | (idiom) sweet words / sweet talk / cajolery | syn | |
| 吃苦耐劳吃苦耐勞 | hardworking and enduring hardships (idiom) | syn | |
| 毛骨悚然 | to have one's hair stand on end (idiom) / to feel one's blood run cold | syn | |
| 面面相觑面面相覷 | to look at each other in dismay (idiom) | ||
| 无忧无虑無憂無慮 | carefree and without worries (idiom) | syn | |
| 视而不见視而不見 | (idiom) to turn a blind eye to / to ignore | syn | |
| 兴致勃勃興致勃勃 | to become exhilarated (idiom) / in high spirits / full of zest | syn | |
| 一清二楚 | to be very clear about sth (idiom) | syn | |
| 栩栩如生 | vivid and lifelike (idiom) / true to life / realistic | syn | |
| 心满意足心滿意足 | perfectly contented (idiom) / perfectly satisfied | syn | |
| 异口同声異口同聲 | different mouths, same voice / to speak in unison (idiom) | syn | |
| 二话不说二話不說 | not saying anything further (idiom) / not raising any objection / without demur | syn | |
| 触目惊心觸目驚心 | lit. shocks the eye, astonishes the heart (idiom) / shocking / horrible to see / a ghastly sight | syn | |
| 相提并论相提並論 | to discuss two disparate things together (idiom) / to mention on equal terms / to place on a par with / (often with negatives: impossible to mention X in the same breath as Y) | syn | |
| 高高在上 | set up on high (idiom) / not in touch with reality / aloof and remote | ||
| 忍无可忍忍無可忍 | more than one can bear (idiom) / at the end of one's patience / the last straw | ||
| 大惊小怪大驚小怪 | to make a fuss about nothing (idiom) | syn | |
| 大街小巷 | great streets and small alleys (idiom) / everywhere in the city | syn | |
| 事半功倍 | half the work, twice the effect (idiom) / the right approach saves effort and leads to better results / a stitch in time saves nine | syn | |
| 爱不释手愛不釋手 | (idiom) to like sth so much that one is reluctant to put it down / to find sth utterly irresistible | syn | |
| 依依不舍 | reluctant to part (idiom) / broken-hearted at having to leave | syn | |
| 举足轻重舉足輕重 | to play a critical role (idiom) / influential | syn | |
| 得天独厚得天獨厚 | blessed by heaven (idiom) / enjoying exceptional advantages / favored by nature | syn | |
| 如火如荼 | like wildfire (idiom) / unstoppable | syn | |
| 轻描淡写輕描淡寫 | (idiom) to treat sth as no big deal / to downplay / to understate | syn | |
| 畅所欲言暢所欲言 | lit. fluently saying all one wants (idiom) / to preach freely on one's favorite topic / to hold forth to one's heart's content | syn | |
| 无所事事無所事事 | to have nothing to do / to idle one's time away (idiom) | syn | |
| 深入人心 | to enter deeply into people's hearts / to have a real impact on the people (idiom) | ||
| 行之有效 | to be effective (idiom) | syn |
The four tones
What a chengyu actually is
A chengyu is almost always four characters long, and it is not a proverb. It is a compressed classical phrase that Chinese still uses in ordinary speech and writing: the characters keep an old order and an old meaning, and unpacking them word by word will not give you the sense. That is why a dictionary of chengyu is a separate tool from the main dictionary, which treats them as ordinary entries.
The list here is not an index of every idiom in the language. It is the most frequent four-character idioms that the English column of the dictionary marks as such, ranked by how often they appear. The ones a learner meets in news, fiction and conversation sit at the top; rarer literary forms sit further down, or not on this page at all.
Each line links through to its dictionary entry, where you will find the full definition and, when the corpus has one, an example sentence. The search tool on the other side of this page is for looking up an idiom you already have in front of you; this list is for discovering which ones are worth knowing first.