1 lit. teacher for one day, father for ever (idiom)
一身是胆
yī shēn shì dǎn
1 devoid of fear (idiom)
2 intrepid
三下两下
sān xià liǎng xià
1 quickly and effortlessly (idiom)
上下其手
shàng xià qí shǒu
1 to raise and lower one's hand (idiom); to signal as conspiratorial hint
2 fig. conspiring to defraud
上有天堂,下有苏杭
shàng yǒu tiān táng , xià yǒu Sū Háng
1 lit. there is heaven above, and there is 蘇杭|苏杭[Sū Háng] below (idiom)
2 fig. the beauty and affluence of Suzhou and Hangzhou is comparable with heaven
上有政策,下有对策
shàng yǒu zhèng cè , xià yǒu duì cè
1 The higher ups have policies while the lower downs have their own ways of getting around them. (idiom)
上有老下有小
shàng yǒu lǎo xià yǒu xiǎo
1 lit. above are the elderly, below are the young (idiom)
2 fig. to have to take care of both one's aging parents and one's children
3 sandwich generation
上梁不正下梁歪
shàng liáng bù zhèng xià liáng wāi
1 lit. If the upper beam is not straight, the lower beam will be crooked (idiom); fig. subordinates imitate their superiors' vices
上气不接下气
shàng qì bù jiē xià qì
1 out of breath (idiom)
2 to gasp for air
上行下效
shàng xíng xià xiào
1 subordinates follow the example of their superiors (idiom)
不愧下学
bù kuì xià xué
1 not ashamed to learn from subordinates (idiom)
世风日下
shì fēng rì xià
1 public morals are degenerating with each passing day (idiom)
干打雷,不下雨
gān dǎ léi , bù xià yǔ
1 all thunder but no rain (idiom)
2 a lot of noise but no action
人在江湖,身不由己
rén zài jiāng hú , shēn bù yóu jǐ
1 you can't always do as you like
2 one has to compromise in this world (idiom)
以其人之道,还治其人之身
yǐ qí rén zhī dào , huán zhì qí rén zhī shēn
1 to use an opponent's own methods to obtain retribution (idiom, from Song dynasty neo-Confucianist Zhu Xi 朱熹); to get revenge by playing sb back at his own game
2 to give sb a taste of his own medicine
以身作则
yǐ shēn zuò zé
1 to set an example (idiom); to serve as a model
以身报国
yǐ shēn bào guó
1 to give one's body for the nation (idiom); to spend one's whole life in the service of the country
以身许国
yǐ shēn xǔ guó
1 to dedicate oneself to the cause of one's country (idiom)
以身试法
yǐ shēn shì fǎ
1 to challenge the law (idiom)
2 to knowingly violate the law
低首下心
dī shǒu xià xīn
1 to be fawningly submissive (idiom)
Sample Sentences
Guess: if someone wears a big round top hat, with a very tight top and extremely baggy pants, with pointy leather shoes, and they have a little moustache, carry a thin walking stick and waddle like a penguin, who are they imitating?