| 天才 | tiān cái | talent / gift / genius / talented / gifted |   |
| 奇才 | qí cái | genius | |
| 俊杰 | jùn jié | elite / outstanding talent / genius | |
| 贤才 | xián cái | a genius / a talented person | |
| 珠玉 | zhū yù | pearls and jades / jewels / clever remark / beautiful writing / gems of wisdom / genius / outstanding person | |
| 谪仙 | zhé xiān | a genius (literally, an immortal who has been banished from heaven to live on earth), an epithet for exceptional individuals such as the Tang poet Li Bai 李白[Li3 Bai2] / (fig.) banished official | |
| 土地 | tǔ di | local god / genius loci | |
| 诸葛亮 | Zhū gě Liàng | Zhuge Liang (181-234), military leader and prime minister of Shu Han 蜀漢|蜀汉[Shu3 Han4] during the Three Kingdoms period / the main hero of the fictional Romance of Three Kingdoms 三國演義|三国演义[San1guo2 Yan3yi4], where he is portrayed as a sage and military genius / (fig.) a mastermind | |
| 元宝 | yuán bǎo | a silver or gold ingot / mock ingot (burnt as offering in worship) / a name for ancient currency / a rare genius | |
| 刘伯温 | Liú Bó wēn | Liu Bowen (1311-1375), general under the first Ming emperor Zhu Yuanzhang 朱元璋[Zhu1 Yuan2 zhang1], with a reputation as a military genius, also called Liu Ji 劉基|刘基[Liu2 Ji1] | |
| 初露头角 | chū lù tóu jiǎo | lit. to first show one's horns (idiom) / fig. a first show of emerging talent / first sign of emerging talent / budding genius | |
| 伏龙凤雏 | fú lóng fèng chú | hidden genius (idiom) | |
| 大智如愚 | dà zhì rú yú | the wise may appear stupid (idiom) / a genius not appreciated in his own time | |
| 珠玉在侧 | zhū yù zài cè | gems at the side (idiom) / flanked by genius | |
| 锦囊妙计 | jǐn náng miào jì | brocade sack of miracle plans (idiom) / bag of tricks / fiendishly cunning masterplan (written out by strategic genius of fiction, and given to the local commander in a brocade bag) | |
| 自学成才 | zì xué chéng cái | a self-made genius | |
| 三个臭皮匠，合成一个诸葛亮 | sān gè chòu pí jiang , hé chéng yī gè Zhū gě Liàng | lit. three ignorant cobblers add up to a genius (idiom) / fig. collective wisdom | |
| 三个臭皮匠，赛过一个诸葛亮 | sān gè chòu pí jiang , sài guò yī gè Zhū gě Liàng | lit. three ignorant cobblers add up to a genius (idiom) / fig. collective wisdom / wisdom of the masses exceeds that of any individual | |
| 三个臭皮匠，赛过诸葛亮 | sān gè chòu pí jiang , sài guò Zhū gě Liàng | lit. three ignorant cobblers add up to a genius (idiom) / fig. collective wisdom / wisdom of the masses exceeds that of any individual | |
| 三个臭皮匠，顶个诸葛亮 | sān gè chòu pí jiang , dǐng gè Zhū gě Liàng | lit. three ignorant cobblers add up to a genius (idiom) / fig. collective wisdom / wisdom of the masses exceeds that of any individual | |
| 刘基 | Liú Jī | Liu Ji or Liu Bowen 劉伯溫|刘伯温[Liu2 Bo2 wen1] (1311-1375), general under the first Ming emperor Zhu Yuanzhang 朱元璋[Zhu1 Yuan2 zhang1], with a reputation as a military genius | |
| 天妒英才 | tiān dù yīng cái | heaven is jealous of heroic genius (idiom) / the great have great hardship to contend with / those whom the Gods love die young | |
| 天才出自勤奋 | tiān cái chū zì qín fèn | genius comes from hard effort / Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration (Thomas Edison) | |
| 雏凤 | chú fèng | lit. phoenix in embryo / fig. young talent / budding genius | |
| 文曲星 | Wén qǔ xīng | constellation governing scholarship and examinations / (fig.) renowned literary genius / brand name of handheld electronic dictionaries made by Beijing company Golden Global View | |
| 怪才 | guài cái | eccentric genius / quirky genius | |
| 鬼才 | guǐ cái | creative genius | |
