谚 (yàn) - proverb, saying, adage — a traditional, widely known

谚Tone 4

yàn ｜ 11 strokes ｜ radical:

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谚 · yàn

proverb, saying, adage — a traditional, widely known expression that often imparts wisdom or advice.

proverb, saying, adage — a traditional, widely known

Usage highlights

proverbfolk sayingancient proverbfarming proverbstreet sayingproverb collection

Synonyms

  • 语— saying, expression
  • 言— word, speech

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • That's an old Chinese proverb (古谚).
  • He often quotes folk sayings (民谚).
  • There's a proverb about the weather (农谚).
  • She collected local adages (谚语).

Collocations

  • proverb(谚语)
  • folk saying(民谚)
  • ancient proverb(古谚)
  • farming proverb(农谚)
  • street saying(俗谚)
  • proverb collection(谚集)

Idioms

  • A common saying(俗谚口碑)
  • Proverbs from the countryside(乡谚俚语)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • Chinese proverbs (谚语) are a key part of oral tradition, often conveying moral lessons or practical wisdom.
  • Many proverbs originate from agricultural society, reflecting observations of nature and human behavior.
  • They are distinct from chengyu (成语) in being more colloquial and sentence-like in structure.

FAQ