AP Chinese idioms

五光十色

wǔ guāng shí sè – bright with many colors; dazzlingly multicolored
节日的街道五光十色，热闹极了。

丰富多彩

fēng fù duō cǎi – rich and colorful; diverse and splendid
她过着丰富多彩的生活，常常去旅行和参加活动。

风和日丽

fēng hé rì lì – gentle breeze and beautiful sun; a fine and sunny day
今天风和日丽，最适合去公园散步。

十全十美

shí quán shí měi – perfect in every way
没有人是十全十美的，每个人都有缺点。

马马虎虎

mǎ mǎ hū hū – so-so; careless
他做作业总是马马虎虎，经常出错

三言两语

sān yán liǎng yǔ – in a few words; briefly
这件事太复杂，三言两语说不清楚。

三三两两

sān sān liǎng liǎng – in small groups or pairs
同学们三三两两地走出教室，准备回家。

七上八下

qī shàng bā xià – an unsettled state of mind; nervous and anxious
考试前他的心情七上八下，怎么也静不下来。

三长两短

sān cháng liǎng duǎn – an unexpected misfortune or accident
他一个人出远门，家里人总担心会出什么三长两短。
He traveled far alone, and his family constantly worried something bad might happen.

再三再四

zài sān zài sì – repeatedly; again and again
老师再三再四地提醒我们要按时交作业。
The teacher reminded us again and again to turn in our homework on time.

五湖四海

wǔ hú sì hǎi – all corners of the country or world
来自五湖四海的游客聚集在北京欣赏故宫的美景。
Visitors from all over the country gathered in Beijing to admire the beauty of the Forbidden City.

三人行必有我师

sān rén xíng bì yǒu wǒ shī – among any three people, I can find a teacher
孔子说“三人行必有我师”，体现了中国人重视学习和尊师的传统文化。
kǒng zǐ shuō “sān rén xíng bì yǒu wǒ shī”, tǐ xiàn le zhōng guó rén zhòng shì xué xí hé zūn shī de chuán tǒng wén huà.
Confucius said, "Among three people, there is always one I can learn from," reflecting the Chinese value of respecting teachers and lifelong learning.

志同道合

zhì tóng dào hé – like-minded; having the same goal or interest
那些志同道合的朋友们一起参加了书法比赛，展示了他们的才华。
nà xiē zhì tóng dào hé de péng yǒu men yī qǐ cān jiā le shū fǎ bǐ sài, zhǎn shì le tā men de cái huá.
The like-minded friends participated in the calligraphy competition together, showcasing their talents.

各种各样

gè zhǒng gè yàng – all kinds of; various
中国的传统节日有各种各样的庆祝方式，体现了丰富的文化。
zhōng guó de chuán tǒng jié rì yǒu gè zhǒng gè yàng de qìng zhù fāng shì, tǐ xiàn le fēng fù de wén huà.
There are various ways to celebrate traditional Chinese festivals, reflecting the richness of the culture.

各行各业

gè háng gè yè – all walks of life; various professions
在中国的春节庆祝活动中，各行各业的人们都会参与其中，展示自己的才艺。
zài zhōng guó de chūn jié qìng zhù huó dòng zhōng, gè háng gè yè de rén men dū huì cān yù qí zhōng, zhǎn shì zì jǐ de cái yì.
During the Chinese New Year celebrations, people from all walks of life participate and showcase their talents.

废寝忘食

fèi qǐn wàng shí – to be so absorbed in something that one forgets to eat or sleep
他为了准备高考，废寝忘食地复习，几乎没有休息的时间。
tā wèi le zhǔn bèi gāo kǎo, fèi qǐn wàng shí de fù xí, jī hū méi yǒu xiū xī de shí jiān.
He studied tirelessly for the college entrance exam, forgetting to eat or sleep, with hardly any time for rest.

废寝忘食

fèi qǐn wàng shí – to be so absorbed in something that one forgets to eat or sleep
他为了准备高考，废寝忘食地复习，几乎没有休息的时间。
tā wèi le zhǔn bèi gāo kǎo, fèi qǐn wàng shí de fù xí, jī hū méi yǒu xiū xī de shí jiān.
He studied tirelessly for the college entrance exam, forgetting to eat or sleep, with hardly any time for rest.

4o mini

九牛二虎之力

jiǔ niú èr hǔ zhī lì – an immense amount of strength; a Herculean effort
为了搬动那块大石头，他们用了九牛二虎之力，才成功把它移开。
wèi le bān dòng nà kuài dà shí tóu, tā men yòng le jiǔ niú èr hǔ zhī lì, cái chéng gōng bǎ tā yí kāi.
It took a Herculean effort to move the large stone, but they succeeded in finally getting it out of the way.

心口如一

xīn kǒu rú yī – to be sincere and honest; to speak with one’s heart
在古代中国的忠臣故事中，许多英雄都展现了心口如一的品质，言行一致，捧心事国。
zài gǔ dài zhōng guó de zhōng chén gù shì zhōng, xǔ duō yīng xióng dōu zhǎn xiàn le xīn kǒu rú yī de pǐn zhì, yán xíng yí zhì, pěng xīn shì guó.
In ancient Chinese tales of loyal ministers, many heroes demonstrated the quality of being sincere and honest, where their words and actions were consistent, dedicating their hearts to serving the country.

刻舟求剑

kè zhōu qiú jiàn – to take an approach that is rigid and unadaptable; to insist on using outdated methods
他像刻舟求剑一样，死守老方法，结果没有进展。
tā xiàng kè zhōu qiú jiàn yī yàng, sǐ shǒu lǎo fāng fǎ, jié guǒ méi yǒu jìn zhǎn.
He, like the story of carving a boat to seek a sword, stuck to old methods and made no progress.

井底之蛙

jǐng dǐ zhī wā – a frog in a well; someone with a limited perspective
他一直觉得自己的家乡最好，就像井底之蛙，没见过外面的世界。
tā yī zhí jué dé zì jǐ de jiā xiāng zuì hǎo, jiù xiàng jǐng dǐ zhī wā, méi jiàn guò wài miàn de shì jiè.
He always thought his hometown was the best, like a frog in a well, having never seen the outside world.

拔苗助长

bá miáo zhù zhǎng – to spoil things by trying to force them; to hasten growth unnaturally
他急于看到成果，拔苗助长，结果反而破坏了计划。
tā jí yú kàn dào chéng guǒ, bá miáo zhù zhǎng, jié guǒ fǎn ér pò huài le jì huà.
He was eager to see results, trying to rush things, but it ended up ruining the plan

鹤立鸡群

hè lì jī qún – to stand out from the crowd; to be outstanding
在比赛中，她的才艺表演鹤立鸡群，吸引了所有人的目光。
zài bǐ sài zhōng, tā de cái yì biǎo yǎn hè lì jī qún, xī yǐn le suǒ yǒu rén de mù guāng.
In the competition, her performance stood out from the crowd, drawing everyone's attention.

万里无云

wàn lǐ wú yún – not a cloud in the sky; perfectly clear weather
在万里无云的天，他踏上了通往梦想的旅程。
zài wàn lǐ wú yún de tiān, tā tà shàng le tōng wǎng mèng xiǎng de lǚ chéng.
Under a cloudless sky, he set off on a journey toward his dreams.

倾盆大雨

qīng pén dà yǔ – a heavy downpour; pouring rain
在倾盆大雨中，他跑回家去拿伞给妹妹。
zài qīng pén dà yǔ zhōng, tā pǎo huí jiā qù ná sǎn gěi mèi mei.
In the pouring rain, he ran home to get an umbrella for his little sister.

大开眼界

dà kāi yǎn jiè – to broaden one's horizons; eye-opening
第一次去北京，他看到了故宫，真是大开眼界。
dì yī cì qù běi jīng, tā kàn dào le gù gōng, zhēn shì dà kāi yǎn jiè.
Seeing the Forbidden City for the first time in Beijing truly opened his eyes.

迫不及待

pò bù jí dài – too impatient to wait; eager
她迫不及待地打开信封，想看看录取通知书。
tā pò bù jí dài de dǎ kāi xìn fēng, xiǎng kàn kàn lù qǔ tōng zhī shū.
She eagerly opened the envelope, wanting to see the admission letter.

一心一意

yì xīn yí yì – wholeheartedly; with single-minded devotion
他一心一意地准备比赛，不让自己分心。
tā yì xīn yí yì de zhǔn bèi bǐ sài, bù ràng zì jǐ fēn xīn.
He prepared for the competition with full focus, not letting himself get distracted.

五颜六色

wǔ yán liù sè – colorful; of many colors
元宵节那天，街上挂满了五颜六色的灯笼。
dēng lóng jié nà tiān, jiē shàng guà mǎn le wǔ yán liù sè de dēng lóng.
On Lantern Festival day, the streets were filled with colorful lanterns.

心花怒放

xīn huā nù fàng – to burst with joy; overjoyed
收到中文比赛的奖状时，他心花怒放地跳了起来。
shōu dào zhōng wén bǐ sài de jiǎng zhuàng shí, tā xīn huā nù fàng de tiào le qǐ lái.
When he received the award for the Chinese competition, he jumped up with joy.

半途而废

bàn tú ér fèi – to give up halfway
他开始学写毛笔字，但没多久就半途而废了。
tā kāi shǐ xué xiě máo bǐ zì, dàn méi duō jiǔ jiù bàn tú ér fèi le.
He started learning calligraphy, but gave up not long after.

日新月异

rì xīn yuè yì – changing with each passing day; rapidly changing
科技的发展日新月异，带来了许多惊人的创新。
kē jì de fā zhǎn rì xīn yuè yì, dài lái le xǔ duō jīng rén de chuàng xīn.
The development of technology is changing with each passing day, bringing many amazing innovations.

数一数二

shǔ yī shǔ èr – one of the best; top-ranking
李白是中国文学史上数一数二的诗人。Lǐ bái shì zhōng guó wén xué shǐ shàng shù yī shǔ èr de shī rén. Li Bai is one of the top poets in Chinese literary history.

美梦成真

měi mèng chéng zhēn – a dream come true
她一直梦想成为医生，终于在毕业后美梦成真。
tā yī zhí mèng xiǎng chéng wéi yī shēng, zhōng yú zài bì yè hòu měi mèng chéng zhēn.
She had always dreamed of becoming a doctor, and after graduation, her dream finally came true.

力不从心

lì bù cóng xīn – unable to do something due to lack of strength or ability
尽管他想帮忙，但因为受伤，力不从心。
jǐn guǎn tā xiǎng bāng máng, dàn yīn wèi shòu shāng, lì bù cóng xīn.
Although he wanted to help, he was unable to due to his injury.

4o mini

一言为定

yī yán wéi dìng – it's settled; one word is enough to decide
他说"明天见"，一言为定，我们就约好了。
tā shuō "míng tiān jiàn", yī yán wéi dìng, wǒ men jiù yuē hǎo le.
He said, "See you tomorrow," and it was settled — we made the plan.

一模一样

yī mú yī yàng – exactly the same; identical
这两本书封面一模一样，连文字也没有区别。
zhè liǎng běn shū fēng miàn yī mú yī yàng, lián wén zì yě méi yǒu qū bié.
The covers of these two books are exactly the same, with no difference in the text either.

心平气和

xīn píng qì hé – calm and composed; peaceful
尽管遇到了困难，他依然心平气和地面对。
jǐn guǎn yù dào le kùn nán, tā yī rán xīn píng qì hé de miàn duì.
Despite facing difficulties, he still approached them calmly and peacefully.

4o mini

心神不定

xīn shén bù dìng – restless; unsettled
考试前，他感到心神不定，一直无法集中注意力。
kǎo shì qián, tā gǎn dào xīn shén bù dìng, yī zhí wú fǎ jí zhōng zhù yì lì.
Before the exam, he felt restless and couldn't focus his attention.

4o mini

满头大汗

mǎn tóu dà hàn – sweating profusely

吃了麻辣火锅后，他满头大汗，忍不住喝了好几杯水。
chī le má là huǒ guō hòu, tā mǎn tóu dà hàn, rěn bù zhù hē le hǎo jǐ bēi shuǐ.
After eating spicy hot pot, he was sweating profusely and couldn't help but drink several cups of water.

比比皆是

bǐ bǐ jiē shì – found everywhere; in abundance

在成都的街头，麻辣小吃比比皆是，吸引了许多游客。
zài chéng dū de jiē tóu, má là xiǎo chī bǐ bǐ jiē shì, xī yǐn le xǔ duō yóu kè.
On the streets of Chengdu, spicy snacks are found everywhere, attracting many tourists.

闷闷不乐

mèn mèn bù lè – feeling down; in low spirits

她今天闷闷不乐，可能是因为四川菜太辣了，吃得不太舒服。
tā jīn tiān mèn mèn bù lè, kě néng shì yīn wèi sì chuān cài tài là le, chī de bù tài shū fú.
She was feeling down today, probably because the Sichuan food was too spicy and made her uncomfortable.

无价之宝

wú jià zhī bǎo – priceless treasure

她收藏的古代书籍是无价之宝，世上只有这一本。
tā shōu cáng de gǔ dài shū jí shì wú jià zhī bǎo, shì shàng zhǐ yǒu zhè yī běn.
The ancient books she collected are priceless treasures, and there is only this one in the world.

马不停蹄

mǎ bù tíng tí – without stopping; non-stop

为了赶上展览开幕，他马不停蹄地整理展品。
wèi le gǎn shàng zhǎn lǎn kāi mù, tā mǎ bù tíng tí de zhěng lǐ zhǎn pǐn.
To catch the exhibition opening, he worked nonstop to organize the displays.