Popular Chinese Idioms

You are probably familiar with the concept of 成语 chéngyǔ (idioms) in Chinese. Maybe you even know a few; if so, we applaud you. Otherwise, we have a few popular Chinese idioms to get you started.

张三李四 Zhāngsān lǐsì (Any Tom, Dick, or Harry)

Literally: Zhang Three, Li Four

This phrase dates back to the Song Dynasty, appearing in multiple pieces of literature from the age.

Nowadays, besides hearing this idiom in full, you may see 张三 or 李四 used as filler names for text or dialogues.

Example:

这件事找专家来做，不要找张三李四。
Zhè jiàn shì zhǎo zhuānjiā lái zuò, bùyào zhǎo zhāngsānlǐsì.
Find a professional to do this, don't just use any Tom, Dick, or Harry.

乱七八糟 Luànqī bāzāo (At sixes and sevens; in great disorder)

Literally: Disorder of seven, eight messes

This idiom refers to two particularly chaotic periods in Chinese history: the Rebellion of the Seven States of the Western Han Dynasty and the Rebellion of the Eight Kings during the Western Jin Dynasty.

To cut a long story short, there was a lot of fighting and bloodshed during both.

Example:

哎呀，我的房间乱七八糟的。我要收拾收拾。
Āiyā, wǒ de fángjiān luànqībāzāo de. Wǒ yào shōushí shōushí.
Ugh, my room is a mess. I need to organize it.

二话不说 Èrhuà bù shuō (To not think twice)

Literally: A second word is not said

Dating back to the 1940s, this idiom finds its origins in the work of famous author Lao She.

Example:

她二话不说就把钱借给她爸爸了。
Tā èrhuà bù shuō jiù bǎ qián jiè gěi tā bàbale.
She lent her father the money without a second thought.

Master these Confusing Chinese Synonym Pairs.

三心二意 Sānxīn èryì (To be of two minds; to be distracted)

Literally: Three hearts, two desires

This idiom hails from the Yuan Dynasty. It seems people have always been indecisive.

Example:

考试的时候不要三心二意 。
Kǎoshì de shíhòu bùyào sānxīn'èryì.
When testing, don't let your mind wander.

不可思议 Bùkěsīyì (Unimaginable)

Literally: Cannot be imagined

We can thank Buddhism for this idiom! In religious contexts, the phrase refers to the subtle boundaries of reality that language and thought cannot describe.

Example:

妈妈抛弃孩子是不可思议的。
Māmā pāoqì háizi shì bùkěsīyì de.
It is unimaginable for a mother to abandon her child.

不见不散 Bùjiàn bú sàn (Be there or be square)

Literally: Not seen, not leaving

This idiom first appears in Qing Dynasty literature. It is also the title of a 1998 Chinese rom-com.

Example:

今天晚上八点一起吃饭，不见不散。
Jīntiān wǎnshàng bā diǎn yīqǐ chīfàn, bùjiàn bú sàn.
We're eating together at 8:00 tonight, be there or be square.

马马虎虎 Mǎmǎhǔhǔ (So-so; vague; careless)

Literally: Horse horse, tiger tiger

As the story goes, there once was an artist who had two sons. One day, the artist was drawing the head of a tiger when he suddenly decided a horse would make a better drawing. Not wanting to waste his materials, he drew the body of a horse onto the tiger's head.

His first son saw the sketch and asked what the creature was. His father told him it was a tiger. The second son saw the drawing and asked what animal was depicted. Wanting to be fair to both parts of his artwork, the artist said it was a horse.

Not long after, the first son was out hunting. He saw a neighbor's horse and shot it, believing it to be a tiger. To reimburse the horse's owner, the artist had to spend his whole life savings and was left destitute.

Not far away, the second son came across a tiger in the woods. Thinking it was a horse, the younger son tried to ride the tiger and was eaten.

Needless to say, the artist was never as vague or careless about his drawings again.

Example:

安全检查不能马马虎虎。
Ānquán jiǎnchá bùnéng mǎmǎhǔhǔ.
Safety checks cannot be done carelessly.

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