英文中的中国谚语

Chinese Classical Proverbs and Sayings (取自贤文诸经):

永不言败。 Never say die.

兼听则明。 Hear all parties.

海底捞月。 Cry for the moon.

瓮中之鳖。 Like a rat in a hole.

害人害己。 Harm set, harm get.

公事公办。 Business is business.

血债血偿。 Blood will have blood.

静以修身。 A light heart lives long.

遗臭万年。 A bad thing never dies.

知己知彼。 Know your Personality.

水火不容。 Oil and water don't mix.

黔驴技穷。 A fool's bolt is soon shot.

人人平等。 A cat may look at a king.

同工同酬。 Equal pay for equal work.

血浓于水。 Blood is thicker than water.

色厉内荏。 A bully is always a coward.

穷则思变。 Adversity leads to prosperity.

化敌为友。 Make your enemy your friend.

知音难觅。 A faithful friend is hard to find.

水火无情。 Fire and water have no mercy.

大智若愚。 He knows most who speaks least.

引狼入室。 He sets the fox to keep the geese.

积习难改。 A leopard cannot change its spots.

孤芳自赏。 Each bird love to hear himself sing.

量入为出。 Cut your coat according to your cloth.

做贼心虚。 Guilty consciences make men cowards.

杀鸡取卵。 If you sell the cow, you sell her milk too.

聚沙成塔。Many a grain of sand piled up will make a pagoda.

患难之交。 Misfortune tests the sincerity of friends. / A friend in need is a friend indeed.

骄兵必败。 Pride will have a fall. ( An army burning with righteous indignation is bound to win.哀兵必胜)

言传身教。 Teach by personal example and verbal instruction. / Acting as an example to others. / Teach both in words and by example.

人上一百，形形色色。 100 people, all kinds.

来也匆匆，去也匆匆。 Easy come, easy go.

金无足赤，人无完人。 Every man has his faults.

聚沙成塔，集腋成裘。 Every little helps a mickle.

小洞不补，大洞吃苦。 A stitch in time saves nine.

星星之火，可以燎原。 Little chips light great fires.

王婆卖瓜，自卖自夸。 Every potter praises hit pot.

失之毫厘，差之千里。 A miss is as good as a mile.

没有朋友，虽生犹死。 Life without a friend is death.

没有竞争，哪来进步。 No competition, no progress.

己所不欲，勿施於人。 Do as you would be done by.

谋事在人，成事在天。 Man proposes, God disposes.

岁月既往，一去不回。 Lost time is never found again.

萝卜青菜，各有所爱。 Every man has his hobbyhorse.

心旷神怡，事事顺利。 A merry heart goes all the way.

爬得越高，摔得越重。 He that climbs high falls heavily.

听宜敏捷，言宜缓行。 Be swift to hear, slow to speak.

一言既出，驷马难追。 A word spoken is past recalling.

胜者为王，败者为寇。 Losers are always in the wrong.

没有最好，只有更好。 There is nothing best but better.

得朋友难，失朋友易。 A friend is easier lost than found.

死得其所，流芳百世。 A fair death honors the whole life.

心有所欲，脑有所思。 The wish is farther to the thought.

耳濡目染，身教言传。 Children are what the mothers are.

一叶障目，不见泰山。 Cannot see the wood for the trees.

当局者迷，旁观者清。 Lookers-on see more than players.

学而不思，白费力气。 Learning without thought is labor lost．

妄自尊大，腹中空空。 He that is full of himself is very empty.

江山易改，本性难移。 A fox may grow gray, but never good.

事不三思，必有所失。 He thinks not wall that thinks not again.

水滴石穿，绳锯木断。 Constant dripping wears away a stone.

一知半解，自欺欺人。 A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

逆水行舟，不进则退。 He who does not advance loses ground.

宁为玉碎，不作瓦全。 It is better to die when life is a disgrace.

未出险境，先别高兴。 Do not halloo till you are out of the wood.

君王发狂，百姓遭殃。 Kings go mad, and the people suffer for it.

要想求知，就得吃苦。 If you want knowledge, you must toil for it.

嫁鸡随鸡，嫁狗随狗。 Where the needle goes, the thread follows.

人过半生，方知天命。 Life is half spent before we know what it is.

明枪易躲，暗箭难防。 False friends are worse than bitter enemies.

塞翁失马，焉知非福。 Nothing so bad but maight have been worse.

自己不动，叫天何用。 Heaven never helps the man who will not act.

人无远虑，必有近忧。 He lives unsafely that looks too near no things.

坐失良机，後悔已迟。 It is too late to grieve when the chance is past.

十年树木，百年树人。 It takes three generations to make a gentleman.

预防为主，治疗为辅。 An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

聪明才智，不如运气。 An ounce of luck is better than a pound of wisdom.

困兽犹斗，狗急跳墙。 Cornered beasts will still you give up．(/ will still fight.)

人不为己，天诛地灭。 Every man for himself, and the devil takes the hindmost.

经常诉苦，没人同情。 He who makes constant complaint gets little compassion.

近朱者赤，近墨者黑。 Keep good men company and you shall be of the number.

城门失火，殃及池鱼。 The gate of the town is on fire, affecting the fish in the pool.

流水不腐，户枢不蠹。 A rolling stone gathers no moss. (滚石不生苔，转业不聚财)

一本好书，相伴一生。 A good book is the best of friends, the same today and forever.

机不可失，时不再来。 Do it now. / Opportunity seldom knocks twice. (or knocks only once.)

百花齐放，百家争鸣。 Let a hundred flowers blossom and a hundred schools of thought contend.

鹬蚌相争，渔人得利。 Two dogs strive for a bone, the third runs away with it. (螳螂捕蝉，黄雀在后)

种瓜得瓜，种豆得豆。 As a man sows, so he shall reap. / Whatever a man sow, that shall he also reap.

前车之鉴，后车之师。 A fall into a pit, a gain in your wit. / Experience must be bought. (Once bitten，twice shy.吃一堑，长一智)

海纳百川，有容乃大。 Empty Sea, tolerance is a great. / All rivers run into sea or containing thousands of little rivers, the sea is great.

亡羊补牢，为时未晚。 Better late than never. / Lock the stable door after the horse has been stolen. / It's never too old to learn, it's never too late to turn.

不鸣则已，一鸣惊人，不飞则已，一飞冲天! It never rains but it pours. And does not fly then already, as soon as flies soars to the heavens!

善有善报，恶有恶报，不是不报，时候未到，时候一到，一切都报。Good will be rewarded with good, and evil with evil; if the reward is not forthcoming, it is because the time has not arrived yet; and when the time arrives, one will get all the rewards he deserves.

纸包不住火。 Murder will out.

呆人有呆福。 Fools has fortune.

谎言站不长。 Lies have short legs.

旧瓶装新酒。 New wine in old bottles.

瑞雪兆丰年。 A snow year, a rich year.

好狗不挡道。 Great barkers are no biters.

朽木不可雕。 Fools grow without watering.

好书如挚友。 A good book is a good friend.

人不在衣装。 Clothes do not make the man．

小人无大志。 Little things amuse little minds.

贵人多忘事。 Great wits have short memories.

人各有所好。 There is no accounting for tastes.

常客令人厌。 A constant guest is never welcome.

夫善则妻贤。 A good husband makes a good wife.

逆境出人才。 Adversity makes a man wise, not rich.

有利必有弊。 Every advantage has its disadvantage.

万事开头难。 It is the first step that costs troublesome.

择书如择友。 Choose an author as you choose a friend.

时势造英雄。 A hero is nothing but a product of his time.

疾风知劲草。 The good seaman is known in bad weather

草动知风向。 A straw will show which way the wind blows.

坐山观虎斗。 Sit on top of the mountain to watch the tigers fight.

正人先正己。 He is not fit to command others that cannot command himself.

三思而后行。 Look before you leap.

摸清情况再行动。(First think and then speak. 先想后说)

不经历风雨，怎样见彩虹。 No cross, no crown.

留得青山在，不怕没柴烧。 Debt is better than death.

一朝被蛇咬，十年怕井绳。 A burnt child dreads the fire.

人不可貌相，海不可斗量。 Judge not from appearances.

有个好习惯，事事皆不难。 Custom makes all things easy.

没做亏心事，不怕鬼叫门。 A good conscience is a soft pillow.

真人不露相，露相非真人。 A wise head makes a close mouth.

只要耐心等，一切皆会来。 Everything comes to him who waits.

一天一苹果，不用请医生。 An apple a day keeps the doctor away.

读书如交友，应求少而精。 Books and friends should be few but good.

想不犯错误，就一事无成。 He who makes no mistakes makes nothing.

吾生也有涯，吾知也无涯。 Knowledge is long, life is short. (学/艺无止境)

好事不出门，坏事传千里。Bad news travels fast. /  Bad news has wings.

世上无难事，只要肯攀登。 Nothing is too difficult if you put your heart into it.

少壮不努力，老大徒伤悲。 A young idler, an old beggar. / An idle youth, a needy age. 背後说好话，才是真朋友。 He is a good friend that speaks well of us behind our backs.

世上无难事，只怕有心人。 It's dogged that does it. / Nothing is impossible to a willing mind. 路遥知马力，日久见人心。 A long road tests a horse's strength and a long task proves a man's heart.

伴君如伴虎，刻刻要当心。 Company a king is just accompanying a tiger, so you should be more careful.

平时不烧香，临时抱佛脚。make effort at the last moment / Danger is sauce for prayers. / cramforthetest.

上当头一回，再多就可耻。 If a man deceives me once, shame on him, if he deceives me twice, shame on me.

好花不常开，好景不常在。 Every day is not Sunday. (Fine flowers don't or The fairest rose doesn't blossom frequently. )

只要功夫深，铁杵磨成针。 With time and patience the leaf of the mulberry becomes satin. (With patience and time， the mulberry-leaf becomes a silk gown.时间加耐心，桑叶变绸穿在身)

历史往往重演。 History repeats itself.

爱情充满烦恼。 Love is full of trouble.

骗人发不了财。 Cheats never prosper.

诚实者最明智。 He is wise that is honest.

做人诚信为本。 Honesty is the best policy.

黄金并非万能。 Gold will not buy anything.

此一时彼一时。 Circumstances alter cases.

不可强求爱情。 Love cannot be compelled.

英雄犯大错误。 Great men have great faults.

人人都有弱点。 Every man has his weak side.

人是万物之灵。 Man is the soul of the universe.

百闻不如一见。 Seeing is believing. (眼见为实)

言教不如身教。 Example is better than percept.

愚者忘乎所以。 He is a fool that forgets himself.

远水不解近渴。 The aid is too slow to be helpful.

好心必有好报。 One good turn deserves another.

无私才能无畏。 Only the selfless can be fearless.

有志者事竟成。 Where there is a will, there is a way.

恐惧源於无知。 Fear always springs from ignorance.

一心不能二用。 A man cannot spin and reel at the same time.

要想活得痛快，身上不能背债。 Happy is he who owes nothing.

有理走遍天下，无理寸步难行。 An empty sack cannot stand upright.

天有不测风云，人有旦夕祸福。 It is the unforeseen that always happens.

人不缺少力量，缺少的是意志。 People do not lack strength, they lack will.

蜡烛照亮别人，却毁灭了自己。 A candle lights others and consumes itself.

抱最好的愿望，做最坏的打算。 Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.

博学使人谦逊，无知使人骄傲。 Knowledge makes humble, ignorance makes proud. 东西是新的好，朋友是老的亲。 Everything is good when new, but friends when old. 好人越学越好，坏人越学越坏。 Learning makes a good man better and ill man worse.

读书使人充实，交谈使人精明。 By reading we enrich the mind, by conversation we polish it.

吸取他人教训，自己才会走运。 Happy is the man who learns from the misfortunes of others.

愚者不学无术，智者不耻下问。 Fools learn nothing from wise men, but wise men learn much from fools.

学而不思则罔，思而不学则殆。Learning without thinking is useless / leads to confusion; thinking without learning ends in danger. (学而不思，必有所失)

心病还需心药医。 Habit cures habit.

人心不足蛇吞象。 No man is content.

知人知面不知心 。Cats hide their claws.

一见锺情难维久。 Hasty love, soon cold.

悠然自在最难求。 Anything for a quiet life.

人人皆可为尧舜。 A cat may look at a king.

说大话者多谎言。 A great talker is a great liar.

新官上任三把火。 A new broom sweeps clean.

世上没有万事通。 No living man all things can.

涓涓溪流汇江河。 Many a little makes a mickle.

众人拾柴火焰高。 Many hands make light work.

无所求则无所获。 Nothing seek,  nothing have.

谎言终究是谎言。 Lies can never changes fact.

小心驶得万年船。 Caution is the parent of safety.

久走夜路必撞鬼。 Its always much walking ghost.

没有生而知之者。 No man is born wise or learned.

好花总有凋谢时。 The fairest rose is last withered.

兔子不吃窝边草。 The fox preys farther from home.

不劳动者不得食。 He that will not work shall not eat.

色字头上一把刀。 Be care eroticism or risk will follow.

远水救不了近火。 Far water doesn't put out near fire.

事後诸葛亮好当。 It is easy to be wise after the event.

收获与风险并存。 He who risks nothing gains nothing.

人生何处不相逢。 Man may meet but mountains never.

欢乐不觉时光过。 Happiness takes no account of time.

好死不如赖活着。 A live dog is better than a dead lion.

问路总比迷路好。 Better to ask the way than go astray.

近水楼台先得月。 First come, first served. (先到的先招待)

浓缩的都是精品。 A little body often harbors a great soul.

初生牛犊不怕虎。 Newborn calves are not afraid of tigers.

挣钱容易攒钱难。 It is easier to get money than to keep it.

火是一把双刃剑。 Fire is a good servant but a bad master.

行为漂亮才算美。 Handsome is he who does handsomely.

不潜深水不得珠。 He who would search pearls dive below.

来而不往非礼也。 Courtesy on one side only lasts not long.

君子之交淡如水。 A hedge between keeps friendship green.

万丈高楼平地起。 The highest towers begin from the ground.

需要之时方知友。 A friend is never known till a man has need.

大树底下好乘凉。 Great trees are good for nothing but shade.

识时务者为俊杰。 It is as well to know which way the wind blows.

行百里者半九十。 Ninety－li is only half of a hundred－li journey.

脚踏两船必落空。 If you run after two hares, you will catch neither.

一失足成千古恨。 Do wrong once and you'll never hear the end of it.

创业容易守业难。 It is easy to open a shop but hard to keep it always open.

业精于勤荒于嬉。 Achievement is founded on diligence and wasted upon recklessness.

这山望着那山高。 The grass is greener on the other side of the hill. / Never be satisfied where one is.

人靠衣装马靠鞍。 (Fine) Clothes make the man. / The tailor makes the man.(衣冠楚楚者，未必就是正人君子)

书到用时方恨少。 At one's wit's end. / You will only regret how little you have learnt when you need to utilize what you have learnt.

人怕出名猪怕壮。Men are afraid of becoming famous, just as pigs afraid of fattening. / Fame portends trouble for men just as fattening does for pigs. / A famed person and a fattened pig are alike in danger.

宰相肚里能撑船。 A great person is large-hearted or magnanimous. / A prime minister's mind should be broad enough for poling a boat. / A prime minister's heart is big enough to sail a boat in.; broad-minded.

一花独放不是春，百花齐放春满园。 A single flower does not make a spring.

不会撑船怪河弯，生意不好怪柜台。 A bad workman always blames his tools.

实磨无声空磨响，满瓶不动半瓶摇。 Empty vessels make the greatest sound.

以德报德是常理，以德报怨大丈夫。 Good for good is natural, good for evil is manly.

有心栽花花不发，无心插柳柳成荫。 Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there.

光说空话不做事，犹如花园光长刺。 A man of words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds.

囊中有钱心中爽，囊中无钱心发慌。 A heavy purse makes a light heart, while a light wallet makes a heavy heart.

儿子婚前是儿子，女儿终生是女儿。 My son is my son till he has got him a wife, but my daughter is my daughter all the days of her life.

良药苦口利于病，忠言逆耳利于行。 Good medicine for health tastes bitter to the mouth. / Bitter pills may have wholesome effects. / A good medicine tastes bitter.

一日之计在于晨，一年之计在于春，一家之计在于和，一事之计在于明，一生之计在于勤。An hour in the morning is worth two in the evening (or the best time is morning). April and May is the key of the year. The best principle for a family is harmony. The best approach to a problem is reason. Best practice is diligence.

凡事不可半途而废。 Do nothing by halves.

谁都有得意的时候。 Every dog has his day.

习惯是后天养成的。 Custom is a second nature.

朋友是时间的窃贼。 Friends are thieves of time.

健康是最大的财富。 Good health is over wealth.

没有不长草的园子。 No garden without its weeds.

从容不慌办事顺畅。 Fair and softly to far in a day.

什麽人交什麽朋友。 A man is known by his friends.

朋友之间不分彼此。 Between friends all is common.

说一遍不如做一遍。 Example is better then percept.

各人有各人的苦恼。 Every heart has its own sorrow.

聪明不是挂在嘴上。 He is a wise man who speaks little.

老狗学不出新把戏。 An old dog cannot learn new tricks.

凡事都应量力而行。 A man can do no more than he can.

需要是发明的动力。 Necessity is the mother of invention.

一分钱难倒英雄汉。 A man without money is no man at all.

凡事总是由难而易。 All things are difficult before they are easy.

朋友不能阿谀奉承。 I cannot be your friend and your flatterer too.

机遇偏爱善断之人。 Fortune favors those who use their judgement.

人生并不是康庄大道。 Life is not all roses.

狗肚子盛不得四两油。 A little pot is soon hot.

不回头的人越走越远。 He goes far that never turns.

只有死人才不犯错误。 He is lifeless that is faultless.

天下没有不散的筵席。 All good things come to an end.

天才不过是勤奋而已。 Genius is nothing but labor & diligence.

吹牛与说谎本是同宗。 A boaster and a liar are cousins-german.

没有十全十美的朋友。 A friend without faults will never be found.

到什么山上唱什么歌。 Sing different songs on different mountains.

自己的命运自己掌握。 Every man is the architect of his own fortune.

不耻下问才能有学问。 A man becomes learned by asking questions.

自嘲者不会让人见笑。 He is not laughed at that laughs at himself first.

狗嘴里吐不出象牙来。 What can you expect from a pig/hog but a grunt?

事业是人生的第一需要。 Business is the salt of life.

朋友之间也会保持距离。 Friends agree best at distance.

浪费时间就是掠夺自己。 Wasting time is robbing oneself.

谨慎和勤奋才能抓住机遇。 Care and diligence bring luck.

学习的敌人是自己的满足。 Complacency is the enemy of study.

书籍是智慧积累的长明灯。 Books are the ever-burning lamps of accumulated wisdom.

自信是走向成功的第一步。 Confidence in yourself is the first step on the road to success. 再好的朋友也有分手的时候。 Friends must part.

伟大的抱负造就伟大的人物。 Great hopes make great man.

只有不攀登的人才不会跌跤。 He that never climbed never fell.

以其人之道，还治其人之身。 To pay someone or a person in his own coin. (一报还一报 / 针锋相对)

行有常，不为尧存，不为桀亡。 Nature is the true law.

敌人逃窜时，人人都成了勇士。 All are brave when the enemy flies.

说谎者即使讲真话也没人相信。 A liar is not believed when he speaks the truth.

与其挂在嘴上，不如落实在行动上。 Doing is better than saying.

百分之就是的灵感是汗水浇出来的。 Ninety percent of inspiration is perspiration.

家和万事兴

1.If the family lives in harmony,all affairs will prosper

2.Harmony in the family is the basis for success in any undertaking.

求人不如求己。

1)  Heaven helps those who help themselves.

追求人和

2)  Striving for harmonious human relations