Chinese Chengyu Dictionary
A dictionary of chengyu, the four-character Chinese idioms. Search by expression, character or pinyin.
| Chengyu | Pinyin | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 自知之明 | zì zhī zhī míng | (idiom) self-knowledge |
| 自作聪明 | zì zuò cōng míng | to think oneself clever (idiom) |
| 自作解人 | zì zuò jiě rén | Translation not yet available |
| 自作自受 | zì zuò zì shòu | Translation not yet available |
| 宗庙社稷 | zōng miào shè jì | Translation not yet available |
| 综核名实 | zōng hé míng shí | Translation not yet available |
| 总而言之 | zǒng ér yán zhī | in short; in a word; in brief |
| 总角之交 | zǒng jiǎo zhī jiāo | (idiom) childhood friend |
| 纵横捭阖 | zòng héng bǎi hé | Translation not yet available |
| 纵横驰骋 | zòng héng chí chěng | Translation not yet available |
| 纵横交错 | zòng héng jiāo cuò | criss-crossed (idiom) |
| 纵虎归山 | zòng hǔ guī shān | Translation not yet available |
| 邹缨齐紫 | zōu yīng qí zǐ | Translation not yet available |
| 走伏无地 | zǒu fú wú dì | Translation not yet available |
| 走过场 | zǒu guò chǎng | to go through the motions |
| 走花溜水 | zǒu huā liū bīng | Translation not yet available |
| 走马赴任 | zǒu mǎ fù rèn | Translation not yet available |
| 走马观花 | zǒu mǎ guān huā | lit. flower viewing from horseback (idiom); a fleeting glance in passing; fig. superficial understanding from cursory observation; to make a quick judgment based on inadequate information |
| 走马看花 | zǒu mǎ kàn huā | lit. flower viewing from horseback (idiom); fig. superficial understanding from cursory observation; to make a quick judgment based on inadequate information |
| 走马上任 | zǒu mǎ shàng rèn | Translation not yet available |
| 走马章台 | zǒu mǎ zhāng tái | Translation not yet available |
| 走南闯北 | zǒu nán chuǎng běi | to travel extensively |
| 走投无路 | zǒu tóu wú lù | to be at an impasse (idiom); in a tight spot; at the end of one's rope; desperate |
| 走为上计 | zǒu wèi shàng jì | see 三十六計，走為上策|三十六计，走为上策[san1 shi2 liu4 ji4 , zou3 wei2 shang4 ce4] |
| 足不出户 | zú bù chū hù | lit. not putting a foot outside; to stay at home |
| 足食足兵 | zú shí zú bīng | Translation not yet available |
| 足音跫然 | zú yīn qióng rán | Translation not yet available |
| 足智多谋 | zú zhì duō móu | resourceful; full of stratagems |
| 钻冰求酥 | zuān bīng qiú sū | Translation not yet available |
| 钻火得冰 | zuān huǒ dé bīng | Translation not yet available |
| 钻牛角尖 | zuān niú jiǎo jiān | lit. to penetrate into a bull's horn (idiom); fig. to waste time on an insoluble or insignificant problem; to bash one's head against a brick wall; a wild goose chase; a blind alley; to split hairs |
| 钻皮出羽 | zuān pí chū yǔ | Translation not yet available |
| 钻天打洞 | zuān tiān dǎ dòng | Translation not yet available |
| 钻头觅缝 | zuān tóu mì fèng | Translation not yet available |
| 钻穴逾墙 | zuān xué yú qiáng | Translation not yet available |
| 嘴尖舌头快 | zuǐ jiān shé tóu kuài | Translation not yet available |
| 嘴甜心苦 | zuǐ tián xīn kǔ | Translation not yet available |
| 嘴直心快 | zuǐ zhí xīn kuài | Translation not yet available |
| 醉酒饱德 | zuì jiǔ bǎo dé | Translation not yet available |
| 醉生梦死 | zuì shēng mèng sǐ | Translation not yet available |
Search by Chinese expression, character or pinyin.
The most frequent idioms are also on a separate dictionary page.
12,999 chengyu listed.
What a chengyu is, and what it is not
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 looking one up is a different job from looking up a word.
This tool searches the table of idioms by expression, character or pinyin. If you already have the four characters in front of you, that is the way in. If you do not, and you want to see which idioms are common enough to be worth knowing first, the browseable list is the other half of the same subject.