成语故事Chéngyǔgùshi (6): Killing Two Birds with One Stone 一举两得 Yì jǔ liǎng dé

一举两得

管庄子和他的邻居上山砍柴,看见两只老虎在抢着吃一只羊。管庄子举起柴刀,就要上去砍老虎。邻居说:“等一等!” 他们躲在大树后面,看着两只老虎打架。大老虎咬住小老虎的头颈,小老虎咬住了大老虎的前腿。

过了一会,大老虎咬死了小老虎,可是小老虎也咬伤了大老虎的前腿。这时候,管庄子和他的邻居举起柴刀,把大老虎砍死了。

他们背着两只老虎回家去。邻居高兴地对管庄子说:“这叫做 ‘一举两得’啊!“


成语 Chéngyǔ,similar to English idiom, is a word group or a phrase which is established through usage and practice. Unlike English idiom, a Chéngyǔ is often made of a fixed number of Chinese characters, and most Chéngyǔ (98%) have four characters. Chéngyǔ often contain literary allusions which were derived from analogy or historical stories. The meaning of a Chéngyǔ is often much more difficult to derive from its constituents than an average English idiom. While some modern Chéngyǔ have a direct literal translation in other languages, many Chéngyǔ do not have a foreign language equivalent due to their strong historical background. One, who is able to master the use of Chéngyǔ, is considered as well-educated and receives respect.

成语的使用 (1)

成语故事Chéngyǔgùshi (5): Self-Contradiction 自相矛盾 Zì xiāng máo dùn