一败涂地 once defeated, the liver and brain will be smeared on the ground; suffer a thorough defeat; meet one’s Waterloo
一触即发 a single touch can trigger it off; be able to be triggered off at any moment; a single mistake in handling the fierce situation can result in a serious consequence
一泻千里 flow down smoothly for thousands of miles: write out one’s ideas with such vigorous inspiration that the writer writes for hours without stop for thinking
两败俱伤 when two tigers are engaged in a combat, man can wait for the opportunity to kill them both; both sides lose in a struggle; neither gains from a conflict
两全其美 satisfaction for both parties; a tactic for one to win without being at the expense of another
两小无猜 (of boy and girl) innocent playmates; (of man and woman) childhood intimates
三长两短 something unfortunate happening to somebody that may cause his life; something may poibly happen that may put somebody’ life in danger; (of a person) whose life may be in danger; (of a sick person) who may be hopele
三纲五常 three superiorities and five virtues (ruler superior to subject, father superior to son, husband superior to wife; benevolence, righteousne, propriety, wisdom and fidelity)
三教九流 three religions and nine schools of thought (Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism; the Confucians, the Taoists, the Yinyang, the Legalists, the Logicians, the Mohists, the Strategists, the Agriculturists); various religious sects and ideological schools; people of all walks of life; all sorts of people
四大皆空 regarding the four major elements (earth, water, fire and wind) as in vain; regarding the physical world as illusory; regarding the world of reality as the world of vanity
四面楚歌 hearing the songs of Chu from the four sides; firmly surrounded by enemies; in a very difficult situation
四平八稳 doing things in a too safe way
五湖四海 five lakes and four seas; from all corners of China
五体投地 prostrating before the admired with the five body parts touching the ground; admiring somebody without reservation
五颜六色 five colors and six tints; of all sorts of color; rich and colorful
六六大顺 six and six means a good luck; the number of six suggests a good luck
六亲不认 deny all the six relatives; deny all one’s relatives; give no favor to any of one’s relatives
六神无主 none of the six vital organs functions; be at one’s wit’s end
七步之才 a seven-pace talent; a talent that can compose a poem within seven paces: a talent of great capability
七零八落 scattered here and there; utterly disordered
七上八下 in getting water from a well, while seven buckets are getting up, eight are getting down; so mentally confused as to be difficult to make a decision
八斗之才 a talent that poees 80 percent of all the aptitude; an unusual talent;
八面玲珑 so tactful as to be able to please all and avoid any embarrament; most tactful
八仙过海 like the Eight Immortals croing the sea, each showing his or her immortal talent;
each deals with his or her aignment by relying on his or her own talent
九九归一 in the final analysis; all in all; in a word
九牛一毛 a hair out of nine ox hides; so insignificant in quantity/number as to be negligible 九死一生 a life that survives nine deaths; a narrowest escape or survival
十恶不赦 ten unpardonable crimes; unpardonable crimes
十面埋伏 with enemy lying in ambush on ten sides; surrounded by ambushed enemies on all sides
十拿九稳 ninety percent sure; mostikely
一朝天子一朝臣 a new sovereign, new courtiers; a new leader, a new leading body
二一添作五 go fifty to fifty; share to share
三三两两 in twos and threes
八九不离十 eighty to ninety percent sure, not far away from one hundred percent sure; most likely
九牛二虎之力 strength of nine bulls and two tigers; tremendous efforts
十八般武艺 skilled in wielding 18 kinds of weapon; extremely skilled with weapons; extremely skilled
十之八九 about nine in ten; most likely
百闻不如一见 a seeing is better than a hundred hearings; experience is better than information; seeing is believing
千辛万苦 through a thousand difficulties and ten thousand hardships; through innumerable hardships
十万火急 a hundred thousand of urgency; (of an urgent meage) to be delivered without any delay; extremely urgent
十万八千里 one hundred and eight thousand miles; distantly off the point
万般皆下品，唯有读书高 schooling is superior to ten thousands of other trades; schooling is superior to all the other trades; schooling enables one to be privileged
