"Idea" • Chinese-English Dictionary

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 yì jiàn idea / opinion / suggestion / objection / complaint / CL:點|点[dian3],條|条[tiao2]
 sī xiǎng thought / thinking / idea / ideology / CL:個|个[ge4]
 yì si idea / opinion / meaning / wish / desire / interest / fun / token of appreciation, affection etc / CL:個|个[ge4] / to give as a small token / to do sth as a gesture of goodwill etc
 gài niàn concept / idea / CL:個|个[ge4]
 zhǔ yi plan / idea / decision / CL:個|个[ge4] / Beijing pr. [zhu2 yi5]
 gòu sī to design / to plot / to plan out / to compose / to draw a mental sketch / conception / plan / idea / composition
 niàn to read / to study (a subject) / to attend (a school) / to read aloud / to give (sb) a tongue-lashing (CL:頓|顿[dun4]) / to miss (sb) / idea / remembrance / twenty (banker's anti-fraud numeral corresponding to 廿[nian4])
 lǐ niàn idea / concept / philosophy / theory
 niàn tou thought / idea / intention
 yì niàn idea / thought
 diǎn zi spot / point / dot / speck / drop (of liquid) / droplet / point (of argument) / idea / crux / indication / pointer
 biǎo xiàng outward appearance / superficial / (philosophy, psychology) representation / idea / (math.) representation
 jiàn yán to make a suggestion / to state (one's views, ideas etc) / suggestion / advice / idea
 yì idea / meaning / thought / to think / wish / desire / intention / to expect / to anticipate
 hún líng soul / mind / idea
 xiǎng tou (coll.) idea / hope
 cù jìn to promote (an idea or cause) / to advance / boost
 dà gài roughly / probably / rough / approximate / about / general idea
 duō me how (wonderful etc) / what (a great idea etc) / however (difficult it may be etc) / (in interrogative sentences) how (much etc) / to what extent
 shèn tòu (lit. and fig.) to permeate / to seep into / (of a product, idea etc) to penetrate (in a population) / (of hostile forces) to infiltrate / (chemistry) osmosis
 shì yì to hint / to indicate (an idea to sb)
 chàng dǎo to advocate / to initiate / to propose / to be a proponent of (an idea or school of thought)
 xiǎng chū to figure out / to work out (a solution etc) / to think up / to come up with (an idea etc)
 dà yì general idea / main idea
 jiè yòng to borrow sth for another use / to borrow an idea for one's own use
 xīn yì new idea
 běn yì original idea / real intention / etymon
 zhí tōng chē "through train" (refers to the idea of retaining previous legislature after transition to Chinese rule in Hong Kong or Macao)
 zhǔ zhǐ gist / main idea / general tenor / one's judgment
 zì chuàng to create / to come up with (an idea etc)
 zhǔ xuán lu:4 (music) theme / principal melody / (fig.) central theme / main idea / (of a movie) created with the purpose of promoting Party values and point of view
 méi mù general facial appearance / features / arrangement / sequence of ideas / logic (of writing) / rough sketch or general idea of things
 hǎo zhǔ yi good idea
 yóu shuì to lobby / to campaign / to promote (an idea, a product) / (old) to visit various rulers and promote one's political ideas (in the Warring States period)
 gāo jiàn wise opinion / brilliant idea (honorific)
 tǒng yī sī xiǎng with the same idea in mind / with a common purpose
 líng jī yī dòng a bright idea suddenly occurs (idiom) / to hit upon an inspiration / to be struck by a brainwave
 chéng jiàn preconceived idea / bias / prejudice
 liáng cè good plan / good idea
 dà lu:è a broad outline / the general idea / roughly
 miù wù error / mistaken idea / falsehood
 tàn zhī to find out / to ascertain / to get an idea of
 xié niàn wicked idea / evil thought / evil desire
 chuàng jiàn an original idea
 líng jī sudden inspiration / bright idea / clever trick
 yì xiǎng subjective idea
 sōu zhǔ yi rotten idea
 huā tou trick / pattern / novel idea / knack
 jiè shī huán hún lit. reincarnated in sb else's body (idiom) / fig. a discarded or discredited idea returns in another guise
 yī wèn sān bù zhī lit. to reply "don't know" whatever the question (idiom) / fig. absolutely no idea of what's going on / complete ignorance
 fú xiǎng passing thought / an idea that comes into one's head / recollection
 xīn zhōng wú shù to have no idea / to be unsure
 gěng branch / stem / stalk / CL:根[gen1] / to block / to hinder / (neologism that evolved from 哏[gen2], initially in Taiwan, during the first decade of the 21st century) memorable creative idea (joke, catchphrase, meme, neologism, witty remark etc) / prominent feature of a creative work (punchline of a joke, trope in a drama, special ingredient in a dish, riff in a pop song etc)
 zhù shì dào móu lit. ask passers-by how to build one's house (idiom) / fig. to have no idea what to do / without a clue
 qún qǐ ér gōng zhī the masses rise to attack it (idiom) / Everyone is against the idea. / universally abhorrent
 fēi fèn zhī niàn improper idea
 lu:è zhī yī èr to know just a little / to have a rough idea
 zhǐ shì ideogram (one of the Six Methods 六書|六书 / of forming Chinese characters) / Chinese character indicating an idea, such as up and down / also known as self-explanatory character
 bà lùn abandoned idea
 zhǐ shì zì ideogram (one of the Six Methods 六書|六书 / of forming Chinese characters) / Chinese character indicating an idea, such as up and down / also known as self-explanatory character
 yī shǎn niàn sudden idea / flash of insight
 chū bù shè xiǎng tentative idea
 dìng pán xīng the zero point indicator marked on a steelyard / fixed opinion / solid idea / decisive plan
 mǔ tí motif (loanword) / main idea / theme
 mǎn yǒu pǔ to have a clearcut idea / to have firm guidelines / to have confidence / to be sure / to be certain
 fā xiǎng to come up with an idea / generation of ideas / inspiration
 xiāng wéi to conflict with (an idea or opinion etc) / to depart from (established norms or standards etc)
 jué duì guān niàn absolute idea (in Hegel's philosophy)
 miù jiàn erroneous views / false idea / false opinion
 shǎn niàn sudden idea / flash of thought
 Zhǔ tǐ Sī xiǎng Juche Idea (North Korean ideology of political, economic and military independence)
 hóng zhǐ gist / main idea
 yì cún bǐ xiān , huà jìn yì zài the idea is present before the first stroke of the brush, when the last stroke is placed the idea shines through
 shī yí cháng jì yǐ zhì yí "learn from the foreigners in order to gain command of them", idea advocated by Wei Yuan 魏源[Wei4 Yuan2]
 bǐ jiàn (my) humble opinion / humble idea
 zhǔn pǔ r definite idea / certainty / clear plan / definite guidelines
 hún rán bù zhī to be totally oblivious (to sth) / to have no idea about sth
 rù guān xué theory proposed in 2019 on Chinese social media, centering on the idea of China replacing the United States as the dominant nation in a new world order, drawing an analogy with the Manchu overthrow of the Ming dynasty, achieved after the Qing army entered China via the Shanhai Pass 入關|入关[ru4 guan1]
 huà yòng to adapt (an idea etc)
 huì cuò yì to misunderstand / to get the wrong idea
 qí sī miào xiǎng an unconventional but wonderful idea
 bēn cuàn (of people or animals) to flee helter-skelter / to scatter / (of floodwater, an idea etc) to spread in all directions
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