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Chinese Idiom
囫囵吞枣 (hú lún tūn zǎo)

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Once upon a time, there lives a young man who likes to read aloud, but he never thoroughly understands his literature's contents, or he only catches part of the importance of what he is reading, or maybe he does not grasp the importance at all. Yet he considered himself knowledgable. One day he went to buy some fruit. On the market the old man selling pears told him that raw pears are good for one's teeth but bad for one's spleen. Another old man selling dates told him raw dates are good for one's spleen but bad for one's teeth. Hearing those words the self-important man said he knew a way to enjoy the nutritional benefits from both, while avoiding the negative side effects. "I could chew pears, but don't swallow them and swallow dates without chewing them." he said. "By doing this, both of my teeth and my spleen will not be hurt." He did what he said and he was choked by a date.
This joke gave rise to the idiom, which refers to lapping up information without digesting it, or reading without comprehension.

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江郎才尽 (jiāng láng cái jìn)

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Jiang Yan lived during the Liang dynasty of the Northern and Southern Dynasties Period, in the area now known as Henan province. Although he came from a poor family, he as extremely hard working, and so became a high-level civil official. Jiang Yan was very talented in the area of literature. Both his poems and his essays were outstanding, and he was known by nearly all the scholars of his time.

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结草衔环 (jié cǎo xián huán)

altDuring the Spring and Autumn Period (chūn qiū 春秋时期,770-476 BC), there lived in the kingdom of Chin a man named Wei Ke (wèi kē 魏颗), whose father had a young and very beautiful concubine. After his father grew old and fell ill, he told Wei Ke that after his death, his son was to marry the concubine into a suitable family. Later, when his illness had grown worse and he was in a state of delirium, he said that he wanted the girl to commit suicide and he buried with him. Wei Ke felt that he should obey what his father had said when he was fully conscious, and so he married the girl into a nice family. Later, Wei Ke was in a battle which he was about to lose, when suddenly he saw an old man come tie a knot in the grass in front of his enemy, His enemy's horse tripped over the knot, and Wei Ke won the battle. That night, Wei Ke had a dream that the old man came to him and said,"I am the father of the concubine, come to repay you for not burying my daughter with your father."

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嗟来之食 (jiē lái zhī shí)

 

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One year during the Spring and Autumn Period (chūn qiū 春秋时期,770-476 BC), there was a the Qi State (qí guó 齐国) was severely strickend by a famine.

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鸡鸣狗盗 (jī míng gǒu dào)

 altDuring the Warring States period(475-221B.C.),Prince Mengchang of the State of Qi was fond of having various kinds of people as his hangers-on,the number of whom was said to have amounted to three thousand.Never refusing anyone who came to hime,he let the talented people do what they could and also offered food and lodging to the mediocre. Once,followed by his hangers-on,Prince Mengchang was sent on a diplomatic mission to the State of Qin.Attermpting to make him prime minister of the state of Qin,King Zhao of the State of Qin kept hime from leaving. Not daring to offend the king,Prince Mengchang stay here.He is a person of royal lineage,and

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井底之蛙 (jǐng dǐ zhī wā)

 

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Have you not heard of the frog that lived in a shallow well? It said to a turtle that lived in the East Sea, "I am so happy! When I go out, I jump about on the railing beside the mouth of the well. When I come home, I rest in the holes on the broken wall of the well. If I jump into the water, it comes up to my armpits and holds up my cheeks.

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