一本万利
yī běn wàn lì
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1 small capital, huge profit (idiom); to put in a little and get a lot out
三句话不离本行
sān jù huà bù lí běn háng
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1 to talk shop all the time (idiom)
勤俭为服务之本
qín jiǎn wéi fú wù zhī běn
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1 hardwork and thriftiness are the foundations of service (idiom)
报本反始
bào běn fǎn shǐ
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1 ensure that you pay debts of gratitude (idiom)
家家有本难念的经
jiā jiā yǒu běn nán niàn de jīng
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1 Every family goes through its problems. (idiom)
慈悲为本
cí bēi wéi běn
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1 mercy as the guiding principle (idiom); the Buddhist teaching that nothing is valid except compassion
舍本逐末
shě běn zhú mò
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1 to neglect the root and pursue the tip (idiom)
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2 to neglect fundamentals and concentrate on details
本性难移
běn xìng nán yí
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1 It is hard to change one's essential nature (idiom). You can't change who you are.
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2 Can the leopard change his spots? (Jeremiah 13:23)
本末倒置
běn mò dào zhì
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1 lit. to invert root and branch (idiom); fig. confusing cause and effect
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2 to stress the incidental over the fundamental
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3 to put the cart before the horse
求田问舍
qiú tián wèn shè
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1 lit. to be interested exclusively in the acquisition of estate (idiom)
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2 fig. to have no lofty aspirations in life
江山易改,本性难移
jiāng shān yì gǎi , běn xìng nán yí
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1 it is easier to change mountains and rivers than to alter one's character (idiom)
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2 you can't change who you are
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3 Can the leopard change his spots?
渤澥桑田
bó xiè sāng tián
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1 lit. blue seas where once was mulberry fields (idiom, from 史記|史记[Shǐ jì], Record of the Grand Historian); time brings great changes
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2 life's vicissitudes
沧海桑田
cāng hǎi sāng tián
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1 lit. the blue sea turned into mulberry fields (idiom)
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2 fig. the transformations of the world
瓜田不纳履,李下不整冠
guā tián bù nà lu:3 , lǐ xià bù zhěng guān
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1 lit. don't tie your shoelaces in a melon patch, and don't adjust your hat under a plum tree (idiom)
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2 fig. don't do anything that might arouse suspicion
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3 innocent acts may be misconstrued
田忌赛马
Tián Jì sài mǎ
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1 Tian Ji races his horses (and accepts one loss in order to ensure two wins) (idiom)
砚田之食
yàn tián zhī shí
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1 to make a living by writing (idiom)
蓝田种玉
lán tián zhòng yù
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1 a marriage made in heaven (idiom)
血本无归
xuè běn wú guī
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1 to lose everything one invested (idiom)
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2 to lose one's shirt
变本加厉
biàn běn jiā lì
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1 lit. change to more severe (idiom); to become more intense (esp. of shortcoming)
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2 to aggravate
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3 to intensify