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70 Chinese proverbs about wisdom, love, life and work

70 Chinese proverbs about wisdom, love, life and work

March 1, 2024

Today we bring you a compilation of Chinese Proverbs that have to do with different aspects of life , especially about wisdom and about love.

Chinese civilization has always been oppressed for different reasons. Because of their class culture, by political dictators ... But they have always found a way to create a strong culture around their country, which makes a difference and which we often underestimate from the West. Dedication, effort and moral values ​​are distinctive features of the Chinese idiosyncrasy.

Short Chinese proverbs

Without further delay, let's see some of the best-known Chinese proverbs and their meanings .


1. People get their hair done every day. Why not the heart?

A reflection on our way of life: we are too obsessed in our image and little in our feelings.

2. Great souls have wills; the weak only wishes.

If you want to grow in life, your will must be in the first place.

3. You can not prevent the bird of sadness from flying over your head, but you can prevent it from nesting in your hair.

About sadness and how to drive it away.

4. When you drink water, remember the source.

How do you interpret this Chinese phrase?

5. He who fears suffering already suffers fear.

Phobophobia was already contemplated by the ancient oriental generations.


6. It is easier to vary the course of a river than the character of a man.

The personality of some individuals is truly complicated to modify.

7. If you do not want it to be known, do not do it.

... Because sooner or later someone will realize that you are hiding something.

8. The best closed door is one that can be left open.

When nothing is feared, there is no place to be worried.

9. It is easy to dodge the spear, but not the hidden dagger.

A phrase to prevent against enemies posing as friends.

10. Dig the well before you are thirsty.

Preventing is a good idea.

11. The wise man does not say what he knows, and the fool does not know what he says.

Interesting reflection on intelligence and cunning.

12. All the rivers go to the sea, but the sea does not overflow.

Another phrase to free interpretation.


13. A dog loon, frying pan in the snouts.

A bit crude phrase that will not please the animalists.

14. There is no delicacy that does not cloy, nor vice that does not enrage.

Everything is good in its proper measure, but when we exceed it we will have to pay the consequences.

15. Ask the experienced man, not the man with studies.

Having read thousands of books does not mean much.

16. If you do not want it to be known, do not do it.

-A trip of ten thousand kilometers begins with a single step.

17. Enjoy only the pleasures of the moment.

Thinking about the future and its honeys can be a double-edged sword ...

18. Love does not beg, it deserves.

Clearer than water.

Chinese proverbs about wisdom

We will continue with more sayings, this time focused on wisdom and knowledge .

19. Before being a dragon, you have to suffer like an ant.

Always start at the bottom.

20. When three march together there must be one who commands.

Without a leader there is no project that can come to fruition.

21. The water makes the boat float, but it can also sink it.

Nothing is intrinsically bad or good, it depends on how we use it.

22. The unmoving dragon in the deep waters becomes the prey of the crabs.

Even if you are very big, if you do not move you can end up being an easy prey.

23. He who does the good of others does his.

No need to add much more. If you do good, surely life will give you back positive things.

24. Time runs like the river: it does not return.

A maxim similar to that of the Greek Heraclitus.

25. Medicine can only cure curable diseases.

Science does not do miracles.

Chinese proverbs about love

Although they have a great reputation for insatiable and savers, the Chinese have also written rivers of ink about love .

Next we will enjoy several traditional phrases that refer to this laudable feeling.

26. The one who has displaced the mountain is the one who started by removing the small stones.

The constant effort has its fruits, although they take time to arrive.

27. He who is not diligent when he is young, will be sorry in vain.

Everything you can do as a young man, do not leave it for the future!

28. Such for which, Pascuala with Pascual.

The members of each couple tend to look a lot like each other.

29. A momentary error becomes an entire remorse.

A miscalculation can leave us touched for a long time.

30. Not seeing what is important because your eyes are obstructed by the trivial.

A phrase analogous to the Spanish: "See the straw in the eye of others"

31. Scalding cat, cold water runs away.

Bad experiences help us to be forewarned in the future.

32Spring is the key season of the year.

Why is it that spring marks us so much?

33. Poorer than rats; have no where to fall dead.

Sayings that we have adapted to Spanish but that come from Chinese popular culture.

Chinese proverbs about work

We have all noticed that Chinese people are very professional and dedicate surprising efforts in every working day. Whether it's a topic or not, many of his proverbs abound in this issue: work .

34. The work of thought resembles the perforation of a well: the water is cloudy at first, but then it becomes clear.

A metaphor to understand how we come to certain conclusions.

35. You have to climb the mountain like an old man to arrive as a young man.

Another phrase that can have different ways of interpreting.

36. The tongue resists because it is soft; the teeth break because they are hard.

Hardness is just an appearance. Adaptive people are those who survive any circumstance.

37. The beautiful roads are not far away.

Normally, the roads are narrow. The flat roads often lead to mediocre destinations.

38. To die without perishing is an eternal presence.

We all leave an indelible trace.

39. Nothing feels better to the body than the growth of the spirit.

Personal growth helps us to be better day after day.

40. Whoever gives way opens the way.

Kindness has a global reward.

41. Those who tread gently go far.

Without making a lot of noise and with constancy you get much farther and with fewer obstacles.

42. If you make plans for a year, plant rice. If you make them for two decades, plant trees. If you make them for a lifetime, educate a person.

A beautiful reflection for life.

43. If you give me fish, I will eat today, if you teach me how to fish I will be able to eat tomorrow.

Moral: do not live of others, learn to generate your own resources.

44. Nobody bathes twice in the same river, because it is always another river and another person.

Taking the teachings of Heraclitus to the extreme.

45. There is no better sponsor than a good neighbor.

Whoever has a close person as a friend has a real treasure.

46. ​​The innocence of a mouse can move an elephant.

A reflection on innocence.

47. The beautiful roads are not far away.

You have to leave the comfort zone.

48. Blessings never come in pairs, and misfortunes never come alone.

Proverb with pessimistic tints.

49. The first time is a grace, the second time is a rule.

Repetition indicates a trend.

50. Never kill a fly on the head of a tiger.

The indirect consequences of what we do can be unpredictable.

51. For those who do not know where they want to go, all roads serve.

Uncertainty makes us make hasty decisions.

52. Whoever has made a knot has to undo it.

A phrase about responsibility.

53. A snowflake never falls in the wrong place.

Chance is created by opportunities.

54. If you want to enlarge the fields of happiness, start by leveling your heart.

Putting order to one's life is necessary to be happy.

55. Defeat the enemy without staining the sword.

The psychological struggle is the one that has more importance.

56. Do not be afraid of being slow, fear only to stop.

Permanent stoppages are like a trap.

57. Do not promise anything when you feel euphoric

The emotional can get too biased.

58. from the blackest clouds falls a water that is clean and fertile.

There are opportunities in the darkest moments.

59. Poverty makes thieves and love poets.

An interesting aphorism on how the context modifies us.

60. It is easier to know how to do something than to do it.

Practice is always easier than theory.

61. Do not place the pot on the fire if the deer still runs in the forest.

Do not anticipate the best possible scenarios.

62. A man is the age of the woman he loves.

An aphorism about traditional couples.

63. Nothing is missing at the funerals of the rich, except for someone who feels his death.

A phrase based on black humor.

64. The man who does not know how to smile should not open the store.

The image counts in the business world.

65. Correct your mistakes, if you have committed them, and beware of them if you have not committed any.

The mistakes strengthen us.

66. Too pure water has no fish.

Perfection has no nuances.

67. Jade needs to be carved to be a gem.

You have to work the talents to make them look.

68. He who studies ten years in darkness will be universally known as he wishes.

The effort brings excellence.

69. Winning a process is to acquire a hen and lose a cow.

A mockery about the mechanisms of justice.

70. Wisdom consists of knowing that you know what is known and knowing that you do not know what you do not know.

An aphorism about wisdom.

I hope you liked the collection of Chinese proverbs. I wanted to highlight the main characteristics of different thinkers like Confucius, so If you think you can contribute a proverb that is not on the list, I'm open to it .

In any case, I hope you like them and share them. A greeting!


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