Chinese sayings and proverbs

Welcome to the largest Chinese proverbs colection. You will find here ancient Chinese proverbs, wise sayings, Chinese phrases and even funny Chinese proverbs. Click on the title to read it, think about it and then read it again. Chinese sayings have layer upon layer of wisdom, so don't hesitate to comment - share your opinion on the sayings, give some real life examples and even ask when you feel puzzled. And if you know some proverb that isn't listed here, don't hesitate to share it!

Happy reading!

If you are standing upright, don’t worry if your shadow is crooked

A wicked book cannot repent

He who can predict winning numbers should not set off fire crackers

Learn to handle a writing-brush and you’ll never handle a begging-bowl

Nature, time and patience are the three great physicians

You buy land, you buy stones; you buy meat, you buy bones

Of all the thirty-six alternatives, running away is the best

Avoid suspicion

Deviate an inch, lose a thousand miles

A fu purse never lacks freends

There belongs more than whistling to going to plough

To get through the hardest journey we need take only one step at a time, but we must keep on stepping

Dig a well before you are thirsty

With money one may command devils; without it, one cannot even summon a man

Outside noisy, inside empty

To believe in one’s dreams is to spend all of one’s life asleep

Slow in word, swift in deed

Riches add to the house, virtues to the man

Add legs to the snake after you have finished drawing it

A man need never revenge himself; the body of his enemy will be brought to his own door

A child’s life is like a piece of paper on which every passerby leaves a mark

O man, you who do not live a hundred years, why fret a thousand minutes?

How can you put out a fire set on a cart-load of firewood with only a cup of water

The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step

Raise your sail one foot and you get ten feet of wind