2 fig. (of officials etc) honest and incorruptible
一碗水端平
yī wǎn shuǐ duān píng
1 lit. to hold a bowl of water level (idiom)
2 fig. to be impartial
一点水一个泡
yī diǎn shuǐ yī gè pào
1 honest and trustworthy (idiom)
三个和尚没水喝
sān gè hé shang méi shuǐ hē
1 lit. three monks have no water to drink (idiom)
2 fig. everybody's business is nobody's business
3 (If there is one monk, he will fetch water for himself. If there are two, they will fetch water together. But if there are three or more, none will take it upon himself to fetch water.)
三缄其口
sān jiān qí kǒu
1 (idiom) reluctant to speak about it
2 tight-lipped
不蒸馒头争口气
bù zhēng mán tou zhēng kǒu qì
1 not to be crushed (idiom)
2 to be determined to have one's revenge
不显山不露水
bù xiǎn shān bù lù shuǐ
1 lit. to not show the mountain and to not reveal the water (idiom); fig. to hide the key facts
交口称誉
jiāo kǒu chēng yù
1 voices unanimous in praise (idiom); with an extensive public reputation
人不可貌相，海水不可斗量
rén bù kě mào xiàng , hǎi shuǐ bù kě dǒu liáng
1 you can't judge a person by appearance, just as you can't measure the sea with a pint pot (idiom)
人往高处走，水往低处流
rén wǎng gāo chù zǒu , shuǐ wǎng dī chù liú
1 man seeks his way up just as water seeks its way down (idiom)
2 one should constantly strive to make progress
仗势欺人
zhàng shì qī rén
1 to take advantage of one's position to bully people (idiom)
2 to kick people around
仗义执言
zhàng yì zhí yán
1 to speak out for justice (idiom); to take a stand on a matter of principle
仗义疏财
zhàng yì shū cái
1 to help the needy for justice (idiom); to be loyal to one's friends and generous to the needy
以免借口
yǐ miǎn jiè kǒu
1 to remove sth that could be used as a pretext (idiom)
似水年华
sì shuǐ nián huá
1 fleeting years (idiom)
佛口蛇心
fó kǒu shé xīn
1 words of a Buddha, heart of a snake (idiom); two-faced
2 malicious and duplicitous
俗谚口碑
sú yàn kǒu bēi
1 common sayings (idiom); widely circulated proverbs
信口开河
xìn kǒu kāi hé
1 to speak without thinking (idiom)
2 to blurt sth out
兵来将挡，水来土掩
bīng lái jiàng dǎng , shuǐ lái tǔ yǎn
1 counter soldiers with arms, water with an earth weir (idiom); different situations call for different action
2 to adopt measures appropriate to the actual situation
兵来将敌，水来土堰
bīng lái jiàng dí , shuǐ lái tǔ yàn
1 counter soldiers with arms, water with an earth weir (idiom); different situations call for different action
2 to adopt measures appropriate to the actual situation
Sample Sentences
That's something to see. A few days ago I read a report saying that the gambling kings have had a war of words. They can't bear the sight of each other!