Chinese Idioms (Chengyu) on Taiwanese Media
Today I will share some 成語—idioms—found in Taiwanese media. These are advanced phrases that will add nuance to your speech and impress native speakers when used well; they are great additions to your vocabulary.
欲罷不能 yù bà bù néng
欲－想要
罷－停
→ Therefore: want to stop but can’t; irresistible
Commonly used in written form, perfect for ad marketing slogan, such as in a food show or YouTube food recommendation. In speaking, it is less commonly used.
Another way to say it:
停不󠇡下來 (tíng bú xià lái) – can’t stop
Example: Foodies in Kaohsiung
饕客也瘋狂 tāo kè yě fēng kuáng
Foodies are also crazy
高雄吃到欲罷不能 gāo xióng chī dào yù bà bù néng
Can’t stop eating in Kaohsiung
Example: Is Kaohsiung fun?
A: 高雄好玩嗎？ gāo xióng hǎo wán ma?
B: 非常好玩，超多好吃的東西！欲罷不能！ fēi cháng hǎo wán, chāo duō hǎo chī de dōng xī! yù bà bù néng!
A: Is Kaohsiung fun?
B: Yes, so much delicious food! Can’t stop! (I’m addicted to it!)
措手不及 cuò shǒu bù jí
手
不及－來不及
→ Therefore: a situation comes up too fast, so people are not prepared to face/handle it; caught off guard
Example: Pandemic
2020年疫情剛爆發的時候，太突然，政府措手不及 nián yì qíng gāng bào fā de shí hòu, tài tú rán, zhèng fǔ cuò shǒu bù jí
Last year when the pandemic broke out, it was too sudden, the government was unprepared (caught off guard).
你的國家呢？疫情剛爆發的時候，大家有沒有措手不及？ nǐ de guó jiā ne? yì qíng gāng bào fā de shí hòu, dà jiā yǒu méi yǒu cuò shǒu bù jí?
What about your country? When the pandemic first broke out, did everyone get caught off guard?
Example: On air
A: 播󠇡報時曾經發生讓你措手不及的事？ bō bào shí céng jīng fā shēng ràng nǐ cuò shǒu bù jí de shì?
Has anything happened while on air that caught you off guard?
B:有時候󠇡學生突然問我一󠇢些複雜問題的時後，我就有點措手不及！ yǒu shí hòu xué shēng tú rán wèn wǒ yì xiē fù zá wèn tí de shí hòu, wǒ jiù yǒu diǎn cuò shǒu bù jí!
Sometimes when students suddenly ask complicated questions, I get kind of caught off guard (Miss Lin’s response!)!
問東問西 wèn dōng wèn xī
(Verb)東(verb)西 set structure－doing this, doing that
→ Therefore: to ask a lot of questions; these questions are quite annoying
Example: Annoying manager
經理一󠇢直問東問西，好煩 jīng lǐ yì zhí wèn dōng wèn xī hǎo fán
The manager keeps asking questions, so annoying
你為󠇡什麼要一󠇢直問東問西？ nǐ wèi shén me yào yì zhí wèn dōng wèn xī?
Why do you keep asking questions?
Example: Relatives
A: 台灣人為󠇡什麼討厭過年？ tái wān rén wèi shén me tǎo yàn guò nián?
Why do Taiwanese people dislike New Year’s Celebrations?
B: 親戚長󠇡輩問東問西 qīn qī zhǎng bèi wèn dōng wèn xī
Relatives (cousins and older relatives) asking too many questions!
成語 can not only make your speaking more sophisticated, it can also level up your Mandarin to the next level, allowing you to speak more naturally and better understand media in Mandarin.
If you wish to level up your Chinese and understand Taiwanese media, please take a look at my Level up 6-month program mandarin-with-miss-lin.teachable.com/p/levelupchineseinsixmonths
