A Chinese idiom — chéngyǔ (成语) — is a short saying, usually four characters, that packs a whole story into a handful of words. Each one comes from an ancient tale, and its lesson has travelled through centuries. Learning one idiom is like learning a tiny fable.
What is a Chinese idiom?
A Chinese idiom — chéngyǔ (成语) — is a short saying, usually four characters, that packs a whole story into a handful of words. Each one comes from an ancient tale, and its lesson has travelled through centuries. Learning one idiom is like learning a tiny fable.
Which Chinese idioms should kids learn first?
These eight idioms appear in Chinese books, comics and everyday conversation across Singapore. Each row gives the idiom, its pinyin, what it means, the story behind it and the lesson it teaches:
| Idiom | Pinyin | Meaning | The story behind it | The lesson |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 守株待兔 | shǒu zhū dài tù | Waiting by a tree stump for a rabbit — hoping for luck instead of working | A farmer catches a rabbit that crashes into a stump, so he abandons his fields and waits for another | Luck is not a plan — keep working |
| 亡羊补牢 | wáng yáng bǔ láo | Mending the pen after the sheep are lost | A man loses sheep through a hole in his pen; a neighbour tells him to mend it before more escape | Fix the problem before it grows — it is never too late |
| 画蛇添足 | huà shé tiān zú | Drawing legs on a snake — adding what is not needed | The fastest painter of a snake adds feet and loses the contest, because snakes have no legs | Stop when the job is done — extra can ruin it |
| 井底之蛙 | jǐng dǐ zhī wā | A frog at the bottom of a well — a narrow view of the world | A frog in a well believes the sky is only as big as the well’s mouth | The world is bigger than what you have seen |
| 拔苗助长 | bá miáo zhù zhǎng | Pulling up the seedlings to help them grow | A farmer pulls his rice shoots to hurry them along, and they wither | Patience — rushing growth destroys it |
| 愚公移山 | yú gōng yí shān | The foolish old man who moved the mountains | An old man keeps digging a mountain away, and his perseverance eventually moves it | Perseverance can move mountains |
| 狐假虎威 | hú jiǎ hǔ wēi | The fox borrowing the tiger’s might | A fox frightens the other animals by walking ahead of a tiger, pretending the tiger fears him | Power borrowed from others is not your own |
| 安居乐业 | ān jū lè yè | Settled in one’s home, happy in one’s work | From the Dao De Jing’s vision of people living peacefully and contentedly in their homes | Peace at home and joy in work go together |
What does 安居乐业 mean?
安居乐业 (ān jū lè yè) means “settled in one’s home, happy in one’s work” — the ideal of a peaceful, contented life. The phrase echoes the Dao De Jing’s vision of people living happily in their homes. It appears on edvocard® Idioms cards.
How do Chinese idioms help children learn?
Idioms connect language to culture and history: four characters carry a story, and the story carries a lesson about patience, honesty or effort. Children who meet idioms in stories remember them naturally. Collecting idiom cards turns that discovery into a game.
Where can kids find Chinese idioms every day?
Idioms appear in Chinese books, comics and conversation all over Singapore. edvocard® Idioms cards collect them — 安居乐业 is one — with the meaning on the card, ready to swap with friends. Every card also carries points, so each idiom a child collects adds knowledge and points to their deck.