中国成语中英文对照idioms.docx

1、中国成语中英文对照idioms中国成语(中英文对照)idioms 口译达人必“背”：中国成语英译 置之死地而后生 Put the troops in death ground and they will live. 道高一尺魔高一丈 While the priest climbs a foot, the devil climbs ten. 预防胜于治疗 Prevention is better than cure. 新官上任三把火 New brooms sweep clean. 塞翁失马焉知非福 Misfortune might be a blessing in disguise. 路遥知马力

2、日久见人心 A distant journey tests the strength of a horse and a long task proves the character of a man. 沧海一栗 a drop in the bucket 盖棺论定 Judge none blessed before his death. 岁月不饶人 Time and tide wait for no man. 经验即良师 Experience is the teacher. 小Car笔记： in disguise：伪装, 假装, 乔装 tide：潮汐【常用短语】turn the tide vi.

3、 扭转局势 万物之灵 the lords of creation 万事开头难 Everything is difficult at the start 万无一失 not a single miss in a thousand times. to hit a person when hes down 隔墙有耳 Pitchers have ears; walls have ears. 开夜车/挑灯夜战 Burn the midnight oil. 开诚布公 He always opens his heart to his spouse when he has a problem. 盗亦有道 Dog

4、 does not eat dog. 善有善报 One kindness is the price of another. 损人利己 to enrich oneself at others expense 小Car笔记： spouse：配偶【例句】He never mentioned his spouse. 他从来不提自己的妻子。enrich oneself：自肥，利己 智者千虑，必有一失 Homer sometimes nods. 胜不骄败不馁 to be not elated by success nor disturbed by failure 富贵在天 Riches and honor

5、s come from heaven. 智者不惑 A wise man is free from perplexities. 无风不起浪 There is no smoke without fire. (Where there is smoke, there is fire.) 画蛇添足 to paint the lily 趁火打劫 to fish in troubled waters 量入为出 to cut ones coat according to ones cloth/ make both ends meet 阳奉阴违 ostensible obedience 跑了和尚跑不了庙 The

6、 monk may run away, but the temple cant run with him. 小Car笔记： Homer：n. 荷马(希腊诗人) lily：百合花,纯白的 troubled waters：混乱状态, 波涛汹涌的水 贫无立锥之地 as poor as a church mouse 雪中送炭真君子/患难见真情 A friend in need is a friend indeed. 异想天开 to give loose to ones fancy 集思广义 Two heads are better than one. 得过且过 to live from hand to

7、 mouth 情人眼里出西施 Love is blind. 情有独钟 had eyes only for：All the girls liked Kevin, but he had eyes only for Mary. 冤家宜解不宜结 Better remove enmity than contract it. 眼不见为净 Out of sight, out of mind. 脱口而出 A slip of the tongue can sometimes land you in trouble. 小Car笔记： a church mouse：一贫如洗的人 slip of the tongue

8、：失言，疏漏，小错误，口误 莫在太岁头上动土 Let sleeping dogs lie. 毕恭毕敬 cap in hand：He always treats his boss cap in hand. 得意忘形 to leap out of ones skin 捷足先登 The early bird catches the worm. 欲速则不达 Haste makes waste./More haste, less speed. 欲加之罪，何患无辞 Give a dog a bad/an ill name and hang him. 混水摸鱼 to fish in troubled wat

9、ers 贪小失大 penny-wise and poundfoolish 习惯成自然 once a use forever a custom 挂羊头卖狗肉 cry up wine and sell vinegar 小Car笔记： troubled waters：混乱状态，波涛汹涌的水poundfoolish：省小钱吃大亏的，因小失大的 cry up：夸奖(称颂) 饥不择食 A good appetite is a good sauce. 害群之马 black sheep 家丑不可外扬 Dont wash your dirty linen in public. 恩威并济 alternate we

10、akness with severity 旁观者清 The outside sees the best of the game. /Lookers-on see most of the game. 时运不济 to have a bad time 殊途同归 All roads lead to Rome. 众志成城/团结就是力量 Union is strenth. 疾风知劲草 Adversity reveals genius. 设身处地 Sometimes you have to learn to be in my shoes. 小Car笔记： dirty linen：家丑，隐私 alternat

11、e：交替，轮流【常用词组】alternate current 交流电alternate motion 往复运动，交变运动reveal：显示，透露，揭示，展现【常用词组】reveal itself 出现(呈现) reveal ones hand 摊牌 南辕北辙 cross purposes：The salesmen were working at cross purposes with their supervisor. 病从口入祸从口出 Illness comes in by mouth and comes out by it. a smile to hide ones hate 留得青山在，

12、不怕没柴烧 Where theres life theres hope 海底捞月 to fish in the air 海底捞针 to look for a needle in a bundle of hay 差之毫厘失之千里 A miss is as good as a mile 既往不咎 Let the dead bury their dead. 杀身成仁 to sacrifice ones life to preserve ones virtue complete 杀鸡焉用牛刀 Take not a musket to kill a butterfly 小Car笔记： a bundle

13、of：一捆(一扎，一包) as good as：和 . 几乎一样 virtue：德行，贞操，美德【常用短语】public virtue 公德make a virtue of necessity 把非做不可的事装成出于好心才做的of easy virtue 不贞节的，水性扬花的 来得容易去得快 Easy come, easy go. 发光的未必都是金子 All that glitters is not gold. 兔子不吃窝边草 The fox preys farthest from his hole. 若要人不知除非己莫为 If you would not be known to do any

14、thing, never do it. 人无笑脸，不要开店 A man without a smiling face must not open a shop. Like father, like son. 往者不可谏，来者犹可追 A mill cannot grind with the water that is past. 见异思迁 Grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. 适者生存 survival of the fittest 物以类聚 Birds of a feather flock together. 小Car笔

15、记： glitter：闪烁，灿烂【常用短语】glitter ice：雨淞，冻雨 flock together：聚集在一起 夜以继日 day and night：The nurse was with the patient day and night. 英雄所见略同 Great minds think alike. 于事无补 Complaining is of little(no) avail. It is better for you to take action now. 姻缘天注定 Marriages are made in heaven. 逆来顺受 to make the best of

16、 a bad bargain 流芳百世 a niche in the temple of fame 为虎作伥 to act as guide to a tiger 孤注一掷 to put all ones egg in one basket 勇者不惧 A brave man will not shrink from dangers. 洗心革面 to turn over a new leaf 小Car笔记： avail：有利，有助于，益处【常用短语】avail oneself of 利用of no avail：完全没有用，完全无效niche：壁龛，适当的位置【常用短语】niche market

17、瞄准机会的市场，缝隙市场trophic niche 营养龛，营养小生态 shrink：收缩，畏缩，萎缩【常用短语】shrink from 退避，在 . 前面畏缩shrink ring 扣环 美中不足 a fly in the ointment 背道而驰 to run counter 赴汤蹈火 to go through fire and water 风烛残年 to have one foot in the grave 风声鹤唳，草木皆兵 to apprehend danger in every sound 活到老学到老 Its never too late to learn./ Live an

18、d learn. 前事不忘后事之师 Remember the past and it will guide your future. 星星之火可以燎原 A single spark can start a prairie fire. 待人宽容如待己 Live and let live. 按部就班 Learn to walk before you run. 小Car笔记： ointment：药膏，油膏，软膏【常用短语】zinc ointment 药氧化锌软膏eye ointment 眼膏counter：与相反的，相反的【常用短语】counter force 对抗力counter current

19、反向电流，逆流 以毒攻毒 to set a thief to catch a thief 以怨报德 He is a person who bites the hand that feeds one. 以逸待劳 To wait at ease till the enemy is exhausted. 以寡敌众 to fight against longer odds 以德报怨 I think it is better for you to render/return good for evil . 以其人之道还治其人之身 to pay somebody (back) in his own coi

20、n 以子之矛，攻子之盾 to turn a persons battery against himself 以柔克刚 Willows are weak yet they bind other wood. (Soft and fair goes far.) 以和为贵 A bad compromise is better than a good lawsuit. 以卵击石 What you do is throw a straw against the wind. (run ones head against a stone wall; Whether the pitcher strikes th

21、e stone or the stone strikes the pitcher, it is bad for the pitcher.) 小Car笔记： at ease：不拘束，自在，安适 battery：律殴打 知人知面不知心 Its easy to know mens faces, but not their hearts. 知己知彼百战百胜 Know your enemy and know yourself. 空中楼阁 castles in the air the gold rule 奇装异服 a fantastic garb 明辨事非 to distinguish right fro

22、m wrong 雨后春笋 like bamboo shoots after a spring shower 雨过天青 After a storm comes a calm. 秀才不出门能知天下事 A scholar does not step outside his gate, yet he knows the happenings under the sun. 事实胜于雄辩 Facts are most convincing. 小Car笔记： garb：打扮，装束，外表【常用词语】prison garb：囚衣，犯人衣服 shoots：嫩芽【常用词语】rice shoots：稻秧苗，禾秧，秧苗

23、bamboo shoots：竹笋 under the sun：天下，究竟 色是假，美是空 Charm is deceitful, and beauty empty. 吉人自有天相 The good are protected by Heaven. / Alls well that ends well. 如愿以偿 get ones way with someone or something：The mayor finally got his way with the city council. (all turn out;have ones wish fulfilled;favorablenes

24、s) 如人饮水冷暖自知 Only the wearer knows where the shoes pain. 知足者富 He who feels contented is rich. 早起的鸟儿有虫吃 The early bird catches the worm. a fantastic garb 忠言逆耳 Honest advice is unpleasant to the ear 明辨是非 to distinguish right from wrong 知足常乐 Happy is he who is content 小Car笔记： Alls well that ends well. 结

25、局好,一切都好。吉人自有天相。 fantastic：奇妙的，空想的，稀奇的【常用词组】fantastic insanity：幻想性精神病light fantastic toe：n.跳舞 distinguish：区别，辨认，使显著【常用词组】distinguish from：不同于，辨别，区分distinguish between：分辨，区分distinguish for：因 . 而出名 有志者事竟成 Where there is a will, there is a way. 有钱能使鬼推磨 Money makes the world go around. /Money talks. 有其父必

26、有其子 Like father, like son. 江山易改本性难移 a fox may grow gray, but never good（The leopard cannot change his spots；you cannot make a cra b walk straight） 三岁看老 The child is father of the man. 百无一失 Not a single miss in a hundred times. 百依百顺 She expects us to jump through hoops for her. 眼见为实 To see is to beli

27、eve. (Seeing is believing.) If you wish to be the best man, you must be prepared to suffer the bitterest of the bitter. 每人一生中皆有得意之日 Every dog has its day. 小Car笔记： jump through hoops：经受磨难，做出很大努力，俯首帖耳，百般讨好，百依百顺 be prepared to：准备做 . 自作自受 As you make your bed so you must lie on it. 自讨苦吃 to make a rod fo

28、r ones own back 自力更生 to shift for oneself 自扫门前雪 After us the deluge. 回头浪子 the return of a prodigal son 先下手为强 Offence is the best defence. 同甘共苦 to share ones joys and sorrows 因地制宜 act according to circumstances 有勇无谋 more brave than wise 有备无患 Good watch prevents misfortune. 小Car笔记： shift：转换，轮班，计谋【常用词组

29、】graveyard shift：n. 全体夜班的工人, (自午夜或凌晨2时的开始工作)夜班（=night shift），白班就是day shift. shift for oneself：独立谋生 prodigal son：回头的浪子，悔改之罪人 misfortune：不幸，坏运气，灾祸【常用词组】meet with a misfortune：生了个私生子（=have a misfortune） 出人头地 Through his hard work, he finally came to the fore. 出类拔萃 John towers above the rest in math. (in a class by itself; out of the common run) 史无前例 without precedent （in history）：His excellent performance at that play is without precedent in history. 令人发指 His cruelty to animals make our hair