Below are some Chinese proverbs or expressions that I have found extremely helpful. They are all written in pinyin, as Chinese characters may not display correctly here.
Chinese Pinyin: “mei chi putao shuo putao suan”
Literal translation – I have not eaten grapes say sour grapes
Believe that grapes are sour even though you have never eaten a grape.
This is a fairly easy proverb to understand and use. It means that you have an opinion or a judgment about something that you have never investigated or know very little about, that is, your opinion is unfounded and you do not have the right to make a judgment about a certain topic or thing. Like someone who says that grapes are sour even though he has never eaten them.
I find this a very useful proverb in China as I often come across people whose opinions are just heresay. For example, when people find out that I come from Canada, the usual conversation that follows is something like how rich and wonderful Canada is. I like to make sure the Chinese know that Canada has poor people too, the streets ARE NOT paved with gold despite what they may think or hear. I once told someone that Canada had homeless people and the local refused to believe me. He went on to tell me what Canada was like even though I had never been there. So the above proverb would have been helpful if I had known it at the time.
There is another proverb almost the same as the previous proverb but with a slightly different meaning:
Chinese Pinyin: “chi budao putao shuo putao suan”
Literal translation – eat not pass grape say sour grape
Saying/believing that grapes are sour if you can’t eat them (to falsely comfort yourself)
This proverb or saying is almost the same as the first one but the meaning is quite different. It’s common for us as humans to envy what we don’t have or can’t afford. Therefore, we often pretend that we don’t want what we can’t have or can’t afford in an effort to comfort ourselves, but we know what mind games we’re trying to play on ourselves and so do the people listening to us trying to play them. . That is basically what this expression means. A nice new BMW car drives by and someone says “Wow, what a nice car” and you go “Oh, BMWs aren’t that great anyway.” You don’t actually believe what you’re saying, but you say it anyway.
Chinese Pinyin: “guangong mianqian shua dadao”
Literal translation – Guangong (name of the famous warlord) versus the game sword
GOLD
Play with a sword in the presence of Guangong
Basically, this means trying to display one’s limited abilities in the presence of someone highly qualified.
Guangong (also known as Guanyu) was a remarkably excellent swordsman. No one dared challenge him to a sword fight, something like a Billy the Kid from Chinese history. So, of course, if someone tried to display his swordsmanship in front of Guanyu, he would be really embarrassing, since he would be no match for Guanyu.
I especially like idioms that cover a bit of Chinese culture or history like this one. Any language that involves Guanyu, Zhugeliang, and similar figures is much more intriguing and interesting in my opinion.
I think the modern use of this proverb is quite obvious. If someone is trying to flaunt her skills in the presence of someone whose skills surpass the flaunter, then this proverb applies.
I think there are 2 sides to its use. One use is if you perhaps want to express your humility. If someone is more skilled than you at something but you still carry out the task for whatever reason, you can say that you are guan1gong1 mian4qian2 shua1 da4dao1. If you say this in this situation, you are guaranteed to get a smile or a laugh from your Chinese friend. Because you are essentially admitting that they are much better than you at this skill (whatever that is). So it’s a way of paying them a compliment or giving them some “face.” Furthermore, a foreigner who uses an expression like this that is close to his heart is guaranteed an excellent reception.
In a negative way, this could also be used to put someone in their shoes, i.e. someone who thinks too much of themselves because they have limited abilities in some area. If there is someone in your presence who is much better then this proverb could be used to put them down or to make them realize that they need to step aside and let the professional take over.
Another idiom that basically has the same meaning is ban1men2nong4fu3. The meaning is basically the same, but I prefer to use guan1gong1 mian4qian2 shua1 da4dao1 for the visual image and cultural content.
Chinese Pinyin: “luobo baicai ge you suo ai”
Literal translation: Chinese turnip cabbage, each has real love
GOLD
Turnip, cabbage, everyone has their own preference.
It basically means It means “Everyone has their own personal taste” or “Every person’s likes and dislikes are different.”
This is one of my MOST used expressions. If you live in China, this is a MUST learn. The reason was that I was sick and tired of going to restaurants and asking them to modify the dishes the way I like them (ie don’t put hot peppers as I don’t like spicy food). Too many times the waitress told me it was “impossible”. When she asked why it was “impossible”, the answer was always “because it won’t taste good that way”. I have no idea where this logic comes from and how it can be so common across the country, but it is. So I was SO happy to stumble across this idiom/phrase that basically throws a wrench into his logic using his own language. Now I don’t need to argue with the waitresses or explain that I have the right to decide what tastes good and what doesn’t. Once I get some resistance from the staff regarding my wishes to change the dishes to my liking, I just utter the above proverb/saying and they usually smile (surprised that a foreigner knows how to use that expression) and get the point. It is strange that such an expression exists in their language, but still they insist on telling others what tastes good and what does not.
Be sure to learn this anyway, as you’ll be using it almost daily (or at least almost every time you go to a restaurant).