Chinese Proverbs (Annotations and Connotations)

Wealth or Peace; Grievances or Safety
With too much wealth, you'll always fear being robbed. Making too many enemies will put you in danger wherever you go.

Between a Superior and a Host.
Let your superior think that you are the "quiet water" that runs deep while seize the opportunity when you are invited to publish yourself.

Green Mountain and Firewood
The proverb is often used in face of setbacks as a consolation: unless the main force is lost, there is always a chance of staging a come-back.

Add Legs to Snake
Do something that is totally unnecessary and spoil what you already have done.

Ant and Dam
If a small problem is overlooked, it could develop into a big disaster as ant can multiple making tunnels in the dam to allow water soak in and consequently bring it to a collapse.

Book and Gold
It is a motto adults use to encourage youngsters to study. If you study hard, you'll have a good job and a chance to make good money.

Dog and Mice
Despite the fact that dogs do catch mice, people still believe that is the business of cats'. Therefore, this proverb refers to someone who is too inquisitive and cares about things that are none of his business.

Donkey's Lips On Horse's Mouth
It refers to something totally irrelevant.

Different Dreams on the Same Bed
It is a reality that even the closest people, husband and wife, will dream different dreams. That means, people are never alike in their minds. The connotation is that you got to be wary of even the people you trust the most.

Fight Wolf with Flex Stalk
Each party is fearful of the other: the wolf thought the stalk could be a fatal weapon while the person fears the consequence of his trick seen through by the wolf. Are you ever caught in a situation like this?

Crane, Camel, and Flea
A crane is too obvious when it stands among a flock of chickens and looks very awkward. It is also true with a camel amidst a flock of sheep and a flea when it stands on top of a hairless head. They all carry a pejoritary tone: the thing that outstands others is something awkward if not necessarily bad.

Crows Are Universally Black
It is a metaphorical statement of "Bad people are bad no matter where you find them because human nature never changes".

Ivory Expected in Dog's Mouth
True, that is an impossibility. The connotation is you can not expect people of evil intent to utter anything good. By the way, in the Chinese culture, dogs are almost always negative in allusions.

Vicious Tigeress Won't Hurt Cubs
Those parents who hurt their children are worse than beasts of prey.

A Fall Makes You Wiser
People learn from their mistakes.

Lose Chicken and Bait
Kind of like "Shoot Your Own Feet". Starting out to hurt others but ending up in being hurt.

Flies Love Cracked Eggs
Cracked eggs that yield odors are as vulnerable to flies as problem children to gangs or bad company.

Flowing Water Never Stale
It means that people got to renew their knowledge not to stay behind. The English "Rolling stone gathers no moss" has a different meaning.

Good Fortune or Bad Luck?
Do not overjoy over good fortune and saddened over a bad luck. There are always the unforeseeable turns for the better or worse.

Frog and the Sky
There is an argument between a bird who stopped to drank at a well and a frog therein. They were arguing about how the sky looked like. Regarding where they were, they each had a different view. The frog's vision was of course very limited. Therefore, this proverb refers to somebody who has a very narrow-minded and insulated view of what they see or what they think.

Mouth of a Dagger and Heart of Tofu
It says of a person who is sharp mouthed but tender-hearted.
Pierce Ears At Wedding
It is a criticism of procrastination. Like a bride who waited till the last munite to get things done that should have been done earlier. It also has the connation that it might be too late to wait till the last munite.

Hard to Dodge a Shot from Behind
It is easier to guard against the obvious.

Frog and the Sky
There is an argument between a bird who stopped to drank at a well and a frog therein. They were arguing about how the sky looked like. Regarding where they were, they each had a different view. The frog's vision was of course very limited. Therefore, this proverb refers to somebody who has a very narrow-minded and insulated view of what they see or what they think.

Mouth of a Dagger and Heart of Tofu
It says of a person who is sharp mouthed but tender-hearted.

Pierce Ears At Wedding
It is a criticism of procrastination. Like a bride who waited till the last munite to get things done that should have been done earlier. It also has the connation that it might be too late to wait till the last munite.

An Inch of Gold for an Inch of Time
Disregard the different use of unit words describing nouns in different cultures. This proverb tells the truth that time is more valuable than money. Money spent or lost can be earned; time lost is lost for good. No money can buy it back. The motto is that we got to make good use of our time.

Useless Jade and Uneducated Man
It is an emphasis on the need of education.

Hasty Dish of Carrot Unclean
When hurry through a job it is impossible to attend to the minute details.

Dismantle Bridge and Kill Donkey
Isn't that ungrateful and mean? There are people who after taking advantage of you turn their back to you.

Water vs Fire and Thirst
In an emergency, regular help from afar can not be reached: expedient measures in the case are very much warrented.

Hard to Alight from Tiger's Back
Once you take on a thorny task, you'll find it hard to get rid of it.

Fast for Fear of Choking
You can't refuse to do the thing you need to just because there is a slight chance to fail.

More Dreams In Longer Night
The longer we stay in a disadvantagous position, the more risks we'll take.

Three Monks Go Thirsty
It is a scenario where lack of individual initiative could breed dependent upon each other so that the more people the lesser things are done.

Contribute Firewood to Build Strong Fire
Another way of saying "United and we can stand strong."

Crowded Chicken Farm Fewer Eggs
Scientifically, it may not be true. But the connotation of this proverb is that when too many people try to do one thing, it proves less efficient.

Sesame Seed vs Watermelon
Concentrate on small matters to the expense of more important ones.

Play Harp to Cow
Similar to "Cast pearls to a swine."

Paper Can't Wrap Fire
How true: it will burn it self out as truth will eventually reveals itself despite coverups.

Regular Feet vs Irregular Shoes
Same as "If you have not done anything evil, you should not worry too much": the good/regular always overwhelms the bad/irregular though in real life it is not necessarily so.

Reshape Foot to Fit Shoe
The logic should be the other way round. Yet, in life there are people who try to sacrifice the big for the small, the important for the trivial.

No Tears Before Seeing Coffin
Will not give up an inevitably losing battle until the last minute. It is a burlesque of the stubbornness and stupidity of people who would not stop until it is too late.

Carrot or Cabbage
"One man's meat is another's poison". People's preferences differ.

A Rabbit Has Three Openings to Home
To succeed you got to have several alternatives.

Snake or Rope
A word by word translation of the original is "Bitten by a snake this year, he'll be scared of well ropes in the next ten." In days when people had to draw water from wells instead of getting it from the tab, ropes, which bear resemblance in appearance to snakes, were a dispensible utility. The proverb decries those who are discouraged by their first failure and are afraid of trying again.

Shoemaker and Statesman
The literary translation of the original is "Three smelly leather shoemakers put together can be counted as a Zhuge Liang", who was one of the greatest statesman as well as a military strategist in ancient Chinese history.

Ears on the Other Side of Wall
Be wary of eavedropping anywhere anytime

Steal a Bell with Ears Covered
A bell is supposed to be ringing when moved and alert the owner. The theft here thought if he covered up his own ears, no one esle in the world will hear it either. That is stupid. Sure. This proverb is just to mock someone who takes it for granted that if he thinks others do not know what he is doing and they would surely do not know it.

Chicken and Monkey; One and Hundred
To warn the many by punishing a few.

Ants Eat Bone
A metaphor describing a situation where people trying an overwhelmingly big task by doing bit by bit with persiverence.

Looking for Ass on Ass's Back
Haven't you had the experience of looking for your glasses when they actually on your nose? It happens.

Gun/Stone and the Foot
Isn't it similar to "Shoot your gun at your own foot"?

Mend Pen After Sheep Flee
Some say it is too late. Some say, well, if you learn a lesson, it is not necessarily late: no more sheep will flee. It is better than if you leave the pen broken at all. Therefore people use the proverb to either purpose.

No Wind, No Waves
How about "There is no fire without smoke."? The assumption here is that rumors may have some grounds.

Best Strategem?
The literary translation of the original is "Of the thirty-six strategems, running away is the best." "The Thirty-Six Strategems" are believed to have covered almost all the military strategic thinking Sun Zi, another greatest military strategist in ancient Chinese history, expounded in his thirteen chapter momograp, which has been regarded as the bible of the military in Chinese history and has now been seen very useful in business in Asia as well.

No Silver but Three Hundred Taels?
Sounds paradoxical? True. Once upon a time, there were a couple, who got three hundred taels of silver, a big sum of currency. Worried that their money would be stolen, they decided to bury them in a jar behind their house. For fear that they might forget where they hid them, they put up a sign saying "There is no money here: three hundred taels". The result, of course, is only too appearant. This proverb is to tease those who say or do things blatantly self-contradictary and consequently become an object of redicule.

Tiger Won't Come Back to His Left-Overs
For fear that he may have exposed his trace, he will not take the risk of being caught in making the same trip a second time. A clever thief would not show up in the same spot soon again.

Catch a Cub in Its Den
Risky as it is, if you are afraid of taking chances, there is no way you can succeed.

Wait for Rabbit to Die to Catch It
What is the chance? You must act instead of waiting to get things done.

No Rice, No Wife to Cook
It may not be true to American housewives who seldom cook rice. But rice is staple food in South China where the proverb may have originated. Without the right material, no matter how good you are, you may not accomplish the task.

Weasal Say Hi to Chickens
Be wary of his malicious intentions.

One Horse Lost May Be a Herd of Them Gained
The story goes that an old man lost his horse. As he was remorsing, the animal returned bringing at his heels a herd more. It is thus regarded as a 'Blessing in disguise".

Plucking Up a Crop to Help It Grow
You have to let things go in its natural course. Being too anxious to help an event to develop will result in the contrary to your intent.

Firewood and Cup of Water
It is useless to apply minor remedies to a major problem.

The Ends of a Sugar Cane
You have to balance it out: In order to get something, you have to sacrifice something else.

Length of Ten Fingers
That is true. And that is true with life: we can't expect everything or everybody is perfect.