引用文章成語英譯(一)

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一朝被蛇咬，十年怕草繩 Once bitten, twice shy. 一言既出，駟馬難追 A word spoken is past recalling. 一見鍾情 to fall in love at first sight 一箭雙鵰 Kill two birds with one stone. 一寸光陰一寸金 Time is money. 一失足成千古恨 The error committed on impulse may turn out to be the sorrow of a whole life. 一將功名萬古枯 What millions died that Caesar might be great. 一年之計在於春，一日之計在於晨 Plan your year in spring and your day at dawn. 一人難稱百人意 You cannot please everyone. 一氣呵成 Never make two bites of a cherry. 九死一生 to have a hair-breadth escape 人生如夢 Life is but a dream. 人生自古誰無死 Death comes to all men. 人生百歲古來稀 It is seldom that a man lives to be a hundred years old. 人定勝天 Man can conquer nature. 人不可貌相 Appearances are often deceptive./ Never judge a look by its cover. 十年風水輪流轉 Every dog has its day. 三思而後行 Look before you leap. 三句不離本行 to talk shop 三個臭皮匠勝過一個諸葛亮 Two heads are better than one. 千鈞一髮 to hang by a hair thread 大智若愚 He who canot play the fool is not a wise man. 大器晚成 Rome was not built in a day. 山窮水盡 at the end of one's resources 山中無老虎，猴子稱大王 Among the blind the one-eyed is king./When the cat's away, the mice will pay. 小題大做 Make a mountain out of a molehill. 小洞不補，大來吃苦 A stitch in time saves nine. 小不忍則亂大謀 Patience is a virtue. 工欲善其事，必先利其器 You cannot make bricks without straw. 不要厚此薄彼 Don't make fish of one and flesh of another. 不畏艱難 Take the bull by the horns. 不要不自量力 Don't put a quarter into a pint pot. 己所不欲勿施於人 Do unto others as you would be done. 仁者無敵 The benevolent have no enemy. 工欲善其事必先利器 You cannot make bricks without straw. 亡羊補牢 Better late than never./ It's never too late to mend. 不告而別 to take French leave 不要不自量力 Don't put a quarter into a pint pot. 不要厚此薄彼 Don't make fish of one and flesh of another. 不畏艱難 Take the bull by the horns. 不戰而屈人之兵 The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting. 不入虎穴焉得虎子 How can one obtain tiger-cubs without entering the tiger's lair. 不經一事，不長一智 Experience is the mother of wisdom. 少年老成 to have an old head on young shoulders 天無絕人之路 God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb. 天下烏鴉一般黑 Crows are black all over the world. 天無絕人之路 God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb./ When one door shuts another opens. 天助自助者 Heaven helps those who help themselves. 天有不測風雲，人有旦夕禍福 It is the unexpected that always happens. 毛遂自薦 to recommend one's own person 心正不怕雷打 A good conscience is a soft pillow. 化干戈為玉帛 Bury the tomahwak(hatchet). 仁者無敵 The benevolent have no enemy. 今日事今日畢 Never put off till tomorrow what may be done today. 文勝於武 The pen is mightier than the sword. 以身作則 to practice what one practices 以毒攻毒 to set a thief to catch a thief 以怨報德 to bite the hand that feeds one 以逸待勞 To wait at ease till the enemy is exhausted. 以寡敵眾 to fight against longer odds 以德報怨 to render good for evil 以其人之道還治其人之身 Set a thief to catch a thief. 以子之矛，攻子之盾 to turn a person's battery against himself 四大皆空 All is vanity. 四海之內皆兄弟 All are brothers within the four seas. 未雨綢繆 to save against a rainy day 目不識丁 not know A from B 失敗為成功之母 Failure is the mother of success. 失之毫釐，差之千里 A miss is as good as a mile. 只要功夫深，鐵杵磨成針 Little strokes fell great oaks. 毛遂自薦 to recommend one's own person 打落水狗 to hit a person when he's down 打鐵趁熱 Strike while the iron is hot. 犯錯是人之常情，寬恕是超凡的 To err is human; to forgive divine. 只要功夫深，鐵杵磨成針 Little strokes fell great oaks. 任勞任怨 to bear hardship without complaint 自作自受 As you make your bed so you must lie on it. 自討苦吃 to make a rod for one's own back 自力更生 to shift for oneself 自掃門前雪 After us the deluge. 回頭浪子 the return of a prodigal 先下手為強 Offence is the best defence. 同甘共苦 to share one's joys and sorrows 因地制宜 act according to circumstances 有勇無謀 more brave than wise 有備無患 Good watch prevents misfortune. 有志者事竟成 Where there is a will, there is a way. 有錢能使鬼推磨 Money makes the world go around. /Money talks. 江山易改本性難移 The child is father of the man. 百無一失 Not a single miss in a hundred times. 百聞不如一見 To see is to believe. (Seeing is believing.) 吃得苦中苦，方為人上人 If you wish to be the best man, you must be prepared to suffer the bitterest of the bitter. 每人一生中皆有得意之日 Every dog has his day. 色是假，美是空 Charm is deceitful, and beauty empty. 吉人自有天相 The good are protected by Heaven. / All's wel that ends well. 如人飲水冷暖自知 Only the wearer knows where the shoes pain. 吃得苦中苦，方為人上人 No gain without pain. 弄巧成拙 Overreach oneself; overshoot oneself; overshoot the mark 忍無可忍 to be at the end of one's patience 忍一時之氣免百日之憂 patience for a moment; comfort for many years 忘恩負義 to kick down the ladder 走馬看花 a flying visit 防患於未然 to nip a thing in the bud 佛要金裝，人要衣裝 Fine feathers make fine birds. 兵精不必多 Too many cooks spoil the broth. 身在福中不知福 The worth of a thing is best known by the want of it. 你敬我一尺，我回你一丈 You scratch my back, and I will sratch yours. 別狗咬呂洞賓，不識好人心 Don't bite the hand that feeds you. 志在千里 Hitch your wagon to a star. 奇裝異服 a fantastic garb 忠言逆耳 Honest advice is unpleasant to the ear 明辨是非 to distinguish right from wrong 知足常樂 Happy is he who is content 知足者富 He who feels contented is rich 知人知面不知心 It's easy to know men's faces, but not their hearts. 知己知彼百戰百勝 Know your enemy and know yourself. 空中樓閣 castles in the air 金科玉律 the gold rule 奇裝異服 a fantastic garb 明辨事非 to distinguish right fromwrong 雨後春筍 like bamboo shoots after a spring shower 雨過天青 After a storm comes a calm. 秀才不出門能知天下事 A scholor does not step outside his gate, yet he knows the happenings under the sun. 事實勝於雄辯 Facts are most convincing. 來得容易去得快 Easy come, easy go. 金玉其外敗絮其中 All that glitters is not gold. 兔子不吃窩邊草 The fox preys farthest from his hole. 若要人不知除非己莫為 If you would not be known to do anything, never do it. 沒有笑臉不出門 A man without a smiling face must not open a shop. 虎父無虎子 Like father, like son. 往者不可諫，來者猶可追 A mill cannot grind with the water that is past. 姻緣天註定 Marriages are made in heaven. 逆來順受 to make the best of a bad bargain 流芳百世 a niche in the temple of fame 為虎作倀 to act as guide to a tiger 孤注一擲 to put all one's egg in one basket 勇者不懼 A brave man will not shrink from dangers. 洗心革面 to turn over a new leaf 美中不足 a fly in the ointment 背道而馳 to run counter 走湯蹈火 to go through fire and water 風燭殘年 to have one foot in the grave 風聲鶴唳，草木皆兵 to apprehend danger in every sound 活到老學到老 It's never too late to learn./ Live and learn. 前事不忘後事之師 Remember the past and it will guide your future. 星星之火可以燎原 A single spark can start a prairie fire. 待人寬容如待己 Live and let live. 按部就班 Learn to walk before you run. 病從口入禍從口出 Illness comes in by mouth and comes out by it. 笑裏藏刀 a smile to hide one's hate 留得青山在，不怕沒柴燒 Where there's life there's hope 海底撈月 to fish in the air 海底撈針 to look for a needle in a bundle of hay 差之毫釐失之千里 A miss is as good as a mile 既往不咎 Let the dead bury their dead. 殺身成仁 to sacrifice one's life to preserve one's virtue complete 殺雞焉用牛刀 Take not a musket to kill a butterfly 飢不擇食 A good appetite is a good sauce. 害群之馬 black sheep 家醜不可外揚 Don't wash your dirty linen in public. 恩威並濟 alternate weakness with severity 旁觀者清 The outside sees the best of the game. 時運不濟 to have a bad time 殊途同歸 All roads lead to Rome. 眾志成城/團結就是力量 Union is strenth. 疾風知勁草 Adversity reveals genius. 旁觀者清，當局者迷 Lookers-on see most of the game. 莫在太歲頭上動土 Let sleeping dogs lie.