Chinese Language Class: Chinese Idioms

If we communicate with Chinese people, we will find that some Chinese idioms are frequently used by people. We can learn Chinese characters in these idioms. So, in this Chinese language class, I will introduce a common Chinese idiom to you. That is “三个臭皮匠赛过诸葛亮(san1 ge4 chou4 pi2 jiang4 sai4 guo4 zhu1 ge3 liang4)”.

To begin with, let’s guess the meaning of it. Knowing the basic meaning is the first step of Mandarin language learning. “三个臭皮匠” means “three cobblers”. “赛过” means “surpass”. And “诸葛亮” is a famous militarist in Chinese history and he is also the famous figure in the novel “ Romance of the Three Kingdoms” He is said to be the most wise and tactful strategist, who has achieved many people’s respect.

From the literal meaning, we can get to know that it is a comparison between “三个臭皮匠” and “诸葛亮”. Why can they surpass the very wise person? Actually, it is the congregated wisdom of them three that surpasses that of “诸葛亮”. In other word, union is strength.

There are some other sayings with the similar meaning. For example, “团结就是力量(tuan2 jie2 jiu4 shi4 li4 liang4)”. The united strength always has the unexpected power. So no matter what you are doing especially when you are in a team, you need to keep it on your mind. Another one is “众人拾材火焰高(zhong4 ren2 shi2 cai2 huo3 yan4 gao1)”. That means the fire will be flamy if most of the people can add firewood to the fire.

In a Chinese language school, a tug-of-war competition is going on. And we can hear a Chinese teacher saying, “加油！团结就是力量(jia1 you2, tuan2 jie2 jiu4 shi4 li4 liang4)”. So, do you understand it now? If not, you may take our other online language courses. Thanks for your attention.