Phrase of the Week
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‘It’s like another world’ — phrase of the week
Just before Shanghai went into lockdown, one U.S.-based Chinese lawyer managed to leave the city after spending a surreal three months in quarantine on a failed trip to visit family.
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‘Suffer a crushing defeat’ — phrase of the week
Tech firms are laying off thousands of employees, but they are still hiring for their international businesses. However, entering overseas markets doesn’t always work out, and can lead to some spectacular failures.
‘The cleverest housewife can’t cook without rice’ — phrase of the week
A career coach can’t help laid-off tech workers if they don’t have the right stuff, and there’s a saying for that.
‘Kill 1,000 enemy soldiers but lose 800’ — phrase of the week
Will Western sanctions against Russia prove to be fruitless and end up harming European countries more than their intended target? That’s what one Chinese scholar suggested with his use of an ancient saying in interviews about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
‘Too much to eat and not enough to do’ — phrase of the week
Eating too much food is a metaphor for being lazy in Chinese. It’s how one NPC delegate attending last week’s Two Sessions was criticized on social media.
‘Let he who tied the bell on the tiger take it off’ — phrase of the week
China has maintained a neutral stance on the Ukraine crisis. But a phrase from a Song Dynasty Buddhist teaching makes its position on where the blame lies very clear.
‘Try anything when in a desperate situation’ — phrase of the week
NIO’s efforts to enter the competitive mobile phone market may seem like a natural progression, but it’s not going to be easy and the company might be doing it for the wrong reasons.
‘Blind Mountain’ morals — phrase of the week
China’s efforts to contain the chained mother scandal have only sparked more outrage online, and many turned to this phrase to express their anger.
They don’t cry until they see the coffin — phrase of the week
After yet another overworked employee died at a Chinese tech firm, many on social media asked, why is no one accepting responsibility even amid tragedy? Here’s the specific Chinese phrase that was used.
Resisting Spring Festival pressures to get married — phrase of the week
Lunar New Year, AKA Spring Festival, is like Thanksgiving for young Chinese people, who have to face their older relatives’ probing questions, and there’s one particular question that is most burdensome.