成语

成語
chéngyǔ
noun HSK 5 #31,696

Measure Word

一条成语 tiáo

Meanings

  1. 1 Chinese idiom (typically four characters)
  2. 2 set phrase; proverb

Characters

Set phrases — established expressions from classical Chinese.

Examples

Nǐ zhīdào duōshǎo chéngyǔ?
How many idioms do you know?
Xué chéngyǔ shì xué Zhōngwén hěn zhòngyào de yībùfèn.
Learning idioms is a very important part of learning Chinese.
Zhōngguó yǒu hěnduō láizì lìshǐ gùshì de chéngyǔ.
China has many idioms that come from historical stories.

Tips

culture
Most 成语 are four characters and come from ancient stories, literature, or history. There are over 30,000 成语. Common ones like 一举两得 (kill two birds with one stone) are used daily.

In Pop Culture

成语大会 Chéngyǔ Dàhuì
Chinese Idiom Competition
CCTV game show where contestants compete on idiom knowledge

Stroke Order

chéng