Chinese allegories
歇后語
Two-part allegorical saying (of which the first part, always stated, is descriptive, while the second part, often unstated, carries the message)
tū tóu shàng de shī zi – míng b?i zhe
禿頭上的虱子 – 明擺著
Like a flea on a bald head – perfectly clear
k?ng fū zǐ bān jiā – jìn shì shū (shū)
孔夫子搬家 – 盡是書（輸）
When Confucius moves (houses), there is nothing but books (because he is a philosopher). – Figuratively, it means you always lose (書 is a homophone for 輸)
jī dàn li tiāo g? tou – gù yì zh?o chá; wú zhōng shēng y?u
雞蛋里挑骨頭 – 故意找茬；無中生有
Look for a bone in an egg – look for a flaw where there is none; find fault; nitpick
pī shuāng bàn dà cōng – yòu dú yòu là; dú là
砒霜拌大蔥 – 又毒又辣；毒辣
Large green Chinese onion served with arsenic – poisonous and pungent; sinister; malignant
pò guàn zi pò shuāi – zì bào zì qì
破罐子破摔 – 自暴自棄
Smash a jar into pieces just because it's already cracked – act recklessly and irresponsibly when facing adversity or despair
l?o sh? pèng shàng māo – zài jié nán táo
老鼠碰上貓 – 在劫難逃
A mouse encounters a cat. – It is impossible to escape its doom; what is destined cannot be avoided.
niú láng huì zhī nǚ – xǐ xiāng féng
牛郎會織女 – 喜相逢
The Cowherd and the Girl Weaver (two figures in an ancient Chinese fairy tale), meet each other. – A pleasant reunion
q? xí fù jià nǚ – shuāng xǐ lín mén
娶媳婦嫁女 – 雙喜臨門
One's son and daughter get married at the same time. – Two happy events occur at the same time; double happiness
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