Nastya
Help I need somebody :D, part 2 My friend gave me some idioms, chinese one. Asked help with translation. They need be traslated in English,but sometimes I have no idea of what they are about. Can anybody help? Maybe there is a web sourse of idioms? 1.白发红颜 - 头发斑白而脸色红润。形容老年人容光焕发的样子。 2.不分青红皂白 - 比喻不分是非,不问情由。 3.不问青红皂白 - 比喻不分是非,不问情由。 4.姹紫嫣红 - 姹、嫣:娇艳。形容各种花朵娇艳美丽。 5.齿白唇红- 牙齿白,嘴唇红。形容面容美。 6.仇人相见,分外眼红- 眼红:激怒的样子。仇敌碰在一起,彼此更加激怒。 7.唇红齿白- 嘴唇红,牙齿白。形容人容貌俊美。 8.翠消红减 - 形容女子姿容减退。 9.灯红酒绿 - 形容奢侈糜烂的生活。 10.耳红面赤 - 耳朵和面部都红了。形容过于用力、情绪激动或羞愧时的脸色。 11.纷红骇绿 - 纷:纷披;红:指红花;骇:散乱;绿:指绿叶。纷披散乱的红花绿叶。形容花草树木随风摆动。 12.红白喜事 - 红指结婚做寿,白指丧事,并到一起说就是红白喜事。 13.红愁绿惨 - 比喻愁思满怀,容易伤感。 14.红豆相思 - 红豆:植物名,又叫相思子,古人常用以象征爱情。比喻男女相思。 15. 红粉青楼 - 红粉:原指红色的铅粉,为女子化妆用品,后借指美女;青楼:妓院。泛称有女色或可寻欢的场合。 16.红男绿女 - 指穿着各种漂亮服装的青年男女。 17.红旗报捷 - 清代军队出征,打了胜仗,派专人手持红旗,急驰进京报捷。现用作报喜的意思。 18.红情绿意 - 形容艳丽的春天景色。 19.红日三竿 - 指天已大亮,时候不早。 20.红绳系足 - 旧指男女双方经由媒人介绍而成亲。
Apr 18, 2014 4:50 AM
Corrections · 4

14.红豆相思 - 红豆:植物名,又叫相思子,古人常用以象征爱情。比喻男女相思。

This expression came from the Tang Dynasty poem,

紅豆生南國, 春來發幾枝, 願君多採擷, 此物最相思

Here 紅豆 is not your average "red bean" (azuki) but the Ormosia hosiei found in China's southern regions.  Its bright red seeds are made into parting gifts for remembrance. This is an ancient custom.  It stems from a story where a husband wept so bitterly for his departed wife that a tree grew on her grave with seeds of bright blood red color.

15. 红粉青楼 - 红粉:原指红色的铅粉,为女子化妆用品,后借指美女;青楼:妓院。泛称有女色或可寻欢的场合。Rouge of the Green Bowers, a euphemistic term in Classical Chinese to describe courtesans.
16.红男绿女 - 指穿着各种漂亮服装的青年男女。

The young decking out in gorgeous clothing. Literally, "Guys in red and girls in green/blue".  Red is an extremely auspicious color.  Men wear red in old Chinese society.  Because of this, officials of a certain rank wear red.
17.红旗报捷 - 清代军队出征,打了胜仗,派专人手持红旗,急驰进京报捷。现用作报喜的意思。

Red flags announcing victory.  Stemming from a Manchu custom of quick reporting military success.  Nowadays for any good news.
18.红情绿意 - 形容艳丽的春天景色。

This again comes from another poem, 紅情綠意知多少, 盡入涇川萬樹花 to describe the beauty of spring.  Here 紅 denotes the redness of flowers and 綠, the leaves.  If it is in prose, I would just say, "the beauty of spring" but if I were to translate in a poem with the flavour of the original language, I would translate it as "The blooms drips with love and leaves emanating in affection"

19.红日三竿 - 指天已大亮,时候不早。

The red sun had risen three poles high.  竿 is a measurement, the height of a pole or in English Imperial units, "the rod".  Again this depends on the context you are going to translate in.  Otherwise, "late afternoon" is the best for prose.
20.红绳系足 - 旧指男女双方经由媒人介绍而成亲。

The red thread binding the feet. From the Chinese myth that when someone is born, the Old Man of the Moon binds one foot with a red thread to the foot of its future destined spouse.  In another words, "a natural match".

April 18, 2014

11.纷红骇绿 - 纷:纷披;红:指红花;骇:散乱;绿:指绿叶。纷披散乱的红花绿叶。形容花草树木随风摆动。

profusion in reds and startling greens.  Description of red flowers and green leaves being blown in the wind.  It is not an idiom but a classical expression to describe a scene. 

12.红白喜事 - 红指结婚做寿,白指丧事,并到一起说就是红白喜事。

Weddings and funerals.  Red is used for weddings and such auspicious occasions.  White is for funerals.  Notice that 喜 is used only.  This is cultural avoidance of any inauspicious connotations.  For example, the shroud is known is 寿袍, the gown of longevity.  Looks like an oxymoron.  Chinese are a supertitious lot.  Even inauspicousness is shrouded (pardon the pun) in lucky terms.
13.红愁绿惨 - 比喻愁思满怀,容易伤感。

Literally red sorrow green/black misery. Here 红 is short of 红顏 (red complexion/face) an euphemism for a beautiful young woman.  綠 here is actually 青 to mean black in classical Chinese as in 青絲 (black strands/hair) of a young woman.  This expression is used to describe a beautiful girl in sorrow.  So the translation of this phrase cannot be direct but as "lamenting beauty"

April 18, 2014
There are SO many sources of Chengyu and Yanyu; just as there are of English or Russian or German proverbs; a simple web search will generate a million hits
April 18, 2014

Help I need somebody :D, part 2

My friend gave me some idioms, chinese one. Asked help with translation.
They need be traslated in English,but sometimes I have no idea of what they are about.
Can anybody help?
Maybe there is a web sourse of idioms?

1.白发红颜 - 头发斑白而脸色红润。形容老年人容光焕发的样子。

Literally white hair and red face.  To express an old man in great health. I would translate it is "White haired with ruddy cheeks".
2.不分青红皂白 - 比喻不分是非,不问情由。

Distinguishing neither green nor red; neither black nor white. 

3.不问青红皂白 - 比喻不分是非,不问情由。

Neither asking whether it is green or red; black or white. Same as #2 meaning don't care whether it is right or wrong.
4.姹紫嫣红 - 姹、嫣:娇艳。形容各种花朵娇艳美丽。

Gorgeous purples and brilliant reds. Idiom to describe beautiful flowers.
5.齿白唇红- 牙齿白,嘴唇红。形容面容美。

Pearly teeth and rosy lips.   meaning beautiful complexion.  This is because in the old days, there's no dental hygiene.  So as one aged, the teeth gets cruddy and lips no longer red.
6.仇人相见,分外眼红- 眼红:激怒的样子。仇敌碰在一起,彼此更加激怒。

When enemies meet, their eyes blazed with hatred.  Exactly meant what it said.
7.唇红齿白- 嘴唇红,牙齿白。形容人容貌俊美。 Same as #5 with order reversed.
8.翠消红减 - 形容女子姿容减退。

The green (ie youth) is fading and the red is decreasing.  An aging beauty.

9.灯红酒绿 - 形容奢侈糜烂的生活。

Red lanterns and green wine.  Scenery of a brothel, ie the luxurious reception of those who can afford the services, hence a life of luxury and debauchery; can also mean a corrupt environment; feasting and pleasure seeking.
10.耳红面赤 - 耳朵和面部都红了。形容过于用力、情绪激动或羞愧时的脸色。

The ears and face had turned scarlet.  Due to over exertion, overly excited or in shame.

 

April 18, 2014
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