(classical particle similar to 於|于[yu2]) in / at / from / because / than / (classical final particle similar to 嗎|吗[ma5], 吧[ba5], 呢[ne5], expressing question, doubt or astonishment)
chicken stock / chicken soup / (fig.) chicken soup for the soul &ndash / i.e. feel-good motivational stories (often used disparagingly because the stories don't really effect change in people's lives)
lit. not eating for fear of choking (idiom) / fig. to cut off one's nose to spite one's face / to avoid sth essential because of a slight risk
倒灌
dào guàn
to flow backwards (of water, because of flood, tide, wind etc) / reverse flow / to back up (sewage)
裙带关系
qún dài guān xi
favoritism shown to sb because of the influence of the person's wife or other female relative / (by extension) favoritism towards relatives, friends or associates
夹生饭
jiā shēng fàn
half-cooked rice / (fig.) half-finished job that is difficult to complete because it was not done properly in the first instance / Taiwan pr. [jia4 sheng5 fan4]
敝帚自珍
bì zhǒu zì zhēn
to value the broom as one's own (idiom) / to attach value to sth because it is one's own / a sentimental attachment
lit. a person who has seen little of the world will be be astonished by certain things (idiom) / fig. to be taken aback by sth because of one's lack of sophistication / naive / unworldy
情不可却
qíng bù kě què
unable to refuse because of affection
破罐破摔
pò guàn pò shuāi
lit. to smash a pot just because it has a crack (idiom) / fig. to give up altogether after a setback / to throw one's hands up in frustration and let it all go to hell
口说无凭
kǒu shuō wú píng
(idiom) you can't rely on a verbal agreement / just because sb says sth, doesn't mean it's true
the practice of favoring sb because of the influence of the person's wife or other female relative / (by extension) culture of favoritism towards relatives, friends and associates
谢病
xiè bìng
to excuse oneself because of illness
赤口日
chì kǒu rì
third day of the lunar year (inauspicious for visits because arguments happen easily on that day)
红色炸弹
hóng sè zhà dàn
(jocular) wedding invitation (lit. "red bomb", because wedding invitations use red paper, and invitees are expected to give a substantial sum of money as a wedding gift)
蚂蚁上树
mǎ yǐ shàng shù
"ants climbing a tree", a Sichuan dish made with cellophane noodles 粉絲|粉丝[fen3 si1] and ground meat (so called because the particles of meat clinging to the noodles look like ants on the twigs of a tree) / (sex position) man standing, woman clinging to his upper body / (erotic massage) full-body licking
小鹿乱撞
xiǎo lù luàn zhuàng
fig. restless, because of fear or strong emotions
不是一家人不进一家门
bù shì yī jiā rén bù jìn yī jiā mén
people who don't belong together, don't get to live together (idiom) / marriages are predestined / people marry because they share common traits
大兴机场
Dà xīng Jī chǎng
Beijing Daxing International Airport (PKX), nicknamed 海星機場|海星机场[hai3 xing1 ji1 chang3] because its terminal looks like a huge starfish
一棍子打死
yī gùn zi dǎ sǐ
to deal a single fatal blow / (fig.) to totally repudiate sb because of a minor error
吃土
chī tǔ
(neologism c. 2015) (slang) (used jokingly) to live on dirt (typically because one has spent all one's money on consumer items)
孔方兄
kǒng fāng xiōng
(coll., humorous) money (so named because in former times, Chinese coins had a square hole in the middle)
拉不出屎来怨茅房
lā bù chū shǐ lái yuàn máo fáng
lit. to blame the toilet because one is having difficulty completing a bowel movement (idiom) / fig. to blame others for problems caused by one's own shortcomings
闹太套
nào tài tào
(Internet slang) transcription of "not at all" &ndash / English words in a song promoting the 2008 Beijing Olympics sung by Huang Xiaoming 黃曉明|黄晓明[Huang2 Xiao3 ming2], who became a laughing stock in China because his pronunciation was perceived as embarrassingly bad / to be a laughing stock / to make a fool of oneself (i.e. equivalent to 鬧笑話|闹笑话[nao4 xiao4 hua5])
赔钱货
péi qián huò
unprofitable goods / item that can only be sold at a loss / daughter (so called in former times because daughters required a dowry when they married)
死了张屠夫，不吃混毛猪
sǐ le Zhāng tú fū , bù chī hùn máo zhū
lit. just because Zhang the butcher dies, doesn't mean we'll have to eat pork mixed with bristles (idiom) / fig. nobody is indispensable
yīn wèi
