成语典故中英对照

概要：后来，“一鼓作气”形容鼓起劲头，一下子把事情干完。 This idiom later meant to get something done with one sustained effort.叶公好龙 Lord Ye Loves Dragons 传说古代有个叶公，非常喜欢龙。他家里的墙上、柱子上、门窗上到处都画满了龙，连日常生活用的东西上也画着龙。天上的真龙知道了。非常感动，就下降到他住的地方，将头伸进窗户，尾巴拖在厅堂。叶公一见真龙。吓得脸都变了颜色，拔腿就跑。 In ancient times there was a man called Ye Gong who was very fond of dragons. In his home everything, including the walls, windows, doors and even articles of daily use, were decorated with dragon designs. A real dragon was quite impressed when it heard

　　后来，“一鼓作气”形容鼓起劲头，一下子把事情干完。
　　This idiom later meant to get something done with one sustained effort.

叶公好龙
Lord Ye Loves Dragons

　　传说古代有个叶公，非常喜欢龙。他家里的墙上、柱子上、门窗上到处都画满了龙，连日常生活用的东西上也画着龙。天上的真龙知道了。非常感动，就下降到他住的地方，将头伸进窗户，尾巴拖在厅堂。叶公一见真龙。吓得脸都变了颜色，拔腿就跑。
　　In ancient times there was a man called Ye Gong who was very fond of dragons. In his home everything, including the walls, windows, doors and even articles of daily use, were decorated with dragon designs. A real dragon was quite impressed when it heard about this, so it went to visit Ye Gong. However, when it stuck its head through the window Ye Gong was frightened and ran away. www.99youjiao.com

　　“叶公好龙”这个成语比喻表面上爱好某种事物，但实际上并不真正爱好。或者假装爱好，实际惧怕。
　　This idiom satirizes those who profess to like or support something, but are averse to it in actual practice.

滥竽充数
Passing Oneself Off as a Member of the Orchestra

　　战国时代，齐宣王非常喜欢听吹竽，而且每次总要三百人同时吹。有一个南郭先生，本来不会吹竽，也混在中间凑数。后来，齐宣王死了，他的儿子齐湣王继位。湣王不喜欢听很多人同时吹竽，而要听一个人一个人地吹。南郭先生知道自己没办法再混下去了，就偷偷地溜走了。
　　In the Warring States Period, King Xuan of the State of Qi loved to listen to the yu -- an ancient wind instrument. He would order 300 musicians at a time to play the yu for him. Mr Nan Guo, who couldn't play the instrument, passed himself off as one of the musicians. When King Xuan died, his son King Min succeeded to the throne. King Min also loved yu, but he preferred solo performances. Mr Nan Guo thereupon slipped away from the orchestra.

　　“滥竽充数”这个成语比喻没有本领而冒充有本领，或者拿次货冒充好货。
　　This idiom is used to describe those who have no actual skills but pretend to be experts, or the passing off of inferior things as high quality ones.

草木皆兵
Every Bush and Tree Looks like an Enemy

　　公元383年，前秦国王苻坚带了80万大军攻打东晋。在淝水一带，被晋朝大将谢玄的前锋部队打得大败。苻坚登上寿阳城，看见晋军阵容严整，心里害怕起来。再远望八公山上长着许多草和树木，也以为是东晋的士兵，更加惊恐万分。后来苻坚终于全军覆没，带着少数残余的队伍逃了回去。
　　In AD 383, the king of Former Qin, Fu Jian, led a huge army to attack Eastern Jin. After losing the first round of fighting, Fu Jian looked down from a city wall, and was terrified when he saw the formidable battle array of the Eastern Jin army. And then looking at the mountain around, he mistook the grass and trees for enemy soldiers. As a result, when the nervous Fu Jian led his army into battle, it suffered a crushing defeat. www.99youjiao.com

　　这个成语用来形容人在极度惊恐时，疑神疑鬼的心理状态。
　　This idiom describes how one can defeat oneself by imagining difficulties.

三顾茅庐
Paying Three Visits to the Cottage

　　三国时，诸葛亮居住在隆中的茅芦里，刘备听说诸葛亮很有学识，又有才能，就带着礼物去请他出来辅助自己打天下。刘备一共去了三次，最后才见到诸葛亮。诸葛亮见刘备十分诚恳，终于答应了他的请求。从此，诸葛亮用全部精力辅助刘备，在军事上和政治上取得了巨大的胜利。
　　In the Three Kingdoms Period, Zhuge Liang lived in seclusion in a thatched cottage. Liu Bei, hearing that Zhuge Liang was very knowledgeable and capable, went to visit him, taking gifts, hoping that Zhuge Liang would agree to assist him with statecraft. He had to make three visits before Zhuge Liang agreed to do so, impressed by his sincerity. From then on, Zhuge Liang helped Liu Bei with all his heart, and made great achievements in both the military and political spheres.

　　“三顾茅庐”这个成语用来比喻诚心诚意地一再邀请人家。
　　This idiom means persisting with sincerity.

掩耳盗铃
Plugging One's Ears While Stealing a Bell

　　春秋时代，晋国有一个人看中了别人的一口铜钟，想把它偷回自己家里。钟又大又重，抱不动也背不动。他脑子一转，想出了一个办法：把钟砸碎，再一块一块地拿回家。于是他拿起了锤子就砸。刚一砸，钟就发出“当，当，当”的响声。他怕别人听见，急忙把自己的耳朵堵了起来。这个人以为自己听不见别人也就听不见了。
　　In the Spring and Autumn Period, a man in the State of Jin took a fancy to a bronze bell and wanted to steal it. The bell was too large and heavy to be moved away, so he decided to smash it to pieces. But when his hammer struck the bell, it gave out a deep booming sound. Fearing that he might be heard, he covered his ears, and carried on with the work. www.99youjiao.com

　　“掩耳盗钟”后来变成“掩耳盗铃”，用来讽刺自作聪明，自己欺骗自己。
　　This idiom comes from the above story. It is used to satirize those who they are smart but only deceive themselves. 

卧薪尝胆
Sleeping on Brushwood and Tasting Gall

　　春秋时代，越国被吴国打败了。越王勾践和他的妻子都被带到吴国做苦工。后来勾践被放回越国，他立志要报亡国之仇。从此，他每天夜里睡在柴草上面，不用被褥。在他住的地方，悬挂着一个苦胆，吃饭前，都要尝一尝苦胆的味道，以提醒自己不忘过去的耻辱。经过十年的艰苦奋斗，越国终于战胜了吴国。
　　In the Spring and Autumn Period, the State of Wu defeated the State of Yue, and took the king of Yue, Gou Jian, and his wife prisoner. For several years, Gou Jian laboured as a slave in Wu. When he was released and returned to Yue, Gou Jian was determined to take revenge for losing his state. So that he would never forget his humiliation, he slept on a pile of brushwood and tasted gall before every meal. After ten years of careful preparations, he attacked and finally conquered the State of Wu.

　　“卧薪尝胆”这个成语用来形容刻苦自励，奋发图强。
　　This idiom is used to describe inspiring oneself and working hard to accomplish an ambition.

胸有成竹
Having a Ready Formed Plan

　　宋朝画家文同，特别喜欢画竹子。他在园子里种了许多竹子，经常仔细观察竹子的生长过程，特别是在晴天，雨后以及春夏秋冬不同的季节下竹子的各种形态，对竹子有了较深切的了解。一旦到他提别绘画时，他的胸中早已有了竹子的形象，所以总是能够把竹子画得生动逼真，活灵活现。
　　In the Song Dynasty, an artist called Wen Tong was especially fond of drawing bamboos. He planted a lot of bamboos in his garden so that he could observe the process of their growth and appearance in different seasons. He knew bamboos so well that whenever he took up the paintbrush he already had a picture in his mind, and thus he could always paint bamboos in a vivid and lively way. www.99youjiao.com

　　“胸有成竹”用来比喻在做事情以前，已经有了充分成熟的考虑，因而成功的把握很大。
　　This idiom is used to indicate having a well thought out plan already before one sets out to do something, making success assured.

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