15 Funny and Wise Chinese Proverbs for Chinese Learners

ThoughtCo/China Daily
Updated: Oct 25, 2018

Chinese proverbs (谚语, yàn yŭ) are popular sayings taken from literature, history, and famous people like philosophers often used colloquially. There are hundreds of Chinese proverbs addressing all aspects of life from education and work to personal goals and relationships.

To find the right Chinese words for each occasion, here is a list of proverbs about a range of topics.

Importance of Education

玉不琢,不成器;人不学,不知义。
yù bù zhuó ,bù chéng qì ;rén bù xué ,bù zhī yì。

Family

虎毒不食子。
hǔ dú bù shí zǐ。

Fear

一朝被蛇咬十年怕井绳。
yī zhāo bèi shé yǎo shí nián pà jǐng shéng。

平生不做亏心事,半夜敲门心不惊。
píng shēng bù zuò kuī xīn shì ,bàn yè qiāo mén xīn bù jīng。

Happiness

笑一笑十年少。
xiào yī xiào shí nián shào 。

Friendship

君子之交淡如水
jūn zǐ zhī jiāo dàn rú shuǐ

Precautions

穷居闹市无人问,富在深山有远亲。
qióng jū nào shì wú rén wèn ,fù zài shēn shān yǒu yuǎn qīn。

祸不单行
huò bù dān xíng

Teamwork

三个臭皮匠,赛过诸葛亮。
sān gè chòu pí jiàng,sài guò zhū gě liàng。

众人拾柴火焰高。
zhòng rén shí chái huǒ yàn gāo。

Time

一寸光阴一寸金,寸金难买寸光阴。
yī cùn guāng yīn yī cùn jīn,cùn jīn nán mǎi cùn guāng yīn 。

Wisdom

欲速则不达。
yù sù zé bù dá。

种瓜得瓜,种豆得豆。
zhòng guā dé guā,zhòng dòu dé dòu。

千里之堤,溃于蚁穴。
qiān lǐ zhī dī, kuì yú yǐ xué。

无风不起浪
wú fēng bù qǐ làng

 

Source: ThoughtCo
Editor: Jade

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