一五一十
yī wǔ yī shí
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1 lit. count by fives and tens (idiom); to narrate systematically and in full detail
一传十,十传百
yī chuán shí , shí chuán bǎi
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1 news pass quickly from mouth to mouth (idiom)
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2 an infectious disease spreads quickly (old meaning)
一年被蛇咬十年怕井绳
yī nián bèi shé yǎo shí nián pà jǐng shéng
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1 bitten by a snake in one year, fears the well rope for ten years (idiom); once bitten twice shy
一暴十寒
yī pù shí hán
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1 one day's sun, ten days' frost (idiom, from Mencius); fig. to work for a bit then skimp
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2 sporadic effort
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3 short attention span
一曝十寒
yī pù shí hán
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1 one day's sun, ten days' frost (idiom, from Mencius); fig. to work for a bit then skimp
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2 sporadic effort
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3 lack of sticking power
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4 short attention span
一朝被蛇咬,十年怕井绳
yī zhāo bèi shé yǎo , shí nián pà jǐng shéng
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1 once bitten by a snake, ten years in fear of a well rope
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2 once bitten, twice shy (idiom)
一目十行
yī mù shí háng
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1 ten lines at a glance (idiom)
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2 to read very rapidly
三七二十一
sān qī èr shí yī
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1 three sevens are twenty-one (idiom)
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2 the facts of the matter
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3 the actual situation
三十而立
sān shí ér lì
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1 thirty years old and therefore independent (idiom, from Confucius)
三百六十行
sān bǎi liù shí háng
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1 all walks of life (idiom)
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2 every trade
五十步笑百步
wǔ shí bù xiào bǎi bù
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1 the one who has retreated 50 steps laughs at the one who has retreated 100 steps (idiom)
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2 the pot calls the kettle black
十全十美
shí quán shí měi
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1 complete and beautiful
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2 to be perfect (idiom)
十年树木,百年树人
shí nián shù mù , bǎi nián shù rén
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1 It takes ten years to nurture a tree, but a hundred years to train a man (idiom). A good education program takes a long time to develop.
十恶不赦
shí è bù shè
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1 wicked beyond redemption (idiom)
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2 heinous
十指不沾阳春水
shí zhǐ bù zhān yáng chūn shuǐ
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1 to have no need to fend for oneself (idiom)
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2 to lead a pampered life
君子报仇,十年不晚
jūn zi bào chóu , shí nián bù wǎn
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1 lit. for a nobleman to take revenge, ten years is not too long (idiom)
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2 fig. revenge is a dish best served cold
女大十八变
nu:3 dà shí bā biàn
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1 lit. a girl changes eighteen times between childhood and womanhood (idiom)
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2 fig. a young woman is very different from the little girl she once was
宁拆十座庙,不毁一桩婚
níng chāi shí zuò miào , bù huì yī zhuāng hūn
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1 rather destroy ten temples than a single marriage (idiom)
闻一知十
wén yī zhī shí
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1 lit. to hear one and know ten (idiom); fig. explain one thing and (he) understands everything
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2 a word to the wise
台上一分钟,台下十年功
tái shàng yī fēn zhōng , tái xià shí nián gōng
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1 ten years of practice for one minute on the stage (idiom)