Understand Chinese humor 1: Witty, funny Chinese sayings with English translation, Mandarin humorous puns and jokes, learn Chinese in a fun way. English pun jokes, Feng fei fei’s joke and Leona Lewis – Happy (Lyrics)

These are some very funny and witty Chinese sayings. Try to listen to them first, and see whether or not you can understand them. If you don’t, read the Chinese sentences. If you still clueless after the reading, then scroll down a bit to find more help.

[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/listen-to59.mp3|titles=listen to]
谎言与誓言的差别在于:一个是听的人当真了,一个是说的人当真了。
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/listen-to60.mp3|titles=listen to]
我这辈子就有两件事不会,1,这也不会。2,那也不会。
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/listen-to61.mp3|titles=listen to]
钱不是问题,问题是没钱。
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/listen-to62.mp3|titles=listen to]
我曾经跟一个人无数次地擦肩而过,衣服都擦破了,也没擦出火花。
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/listen-to63.mp3|titles=listen to]
当你披上了婚纱,我也披上了袈裟。
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/listen-to64.mp3|titles=listen to]
说假话总会被人揭穿,戴假发总会被风揭穿。
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/listen-to65.mp3|titles=listen to]
人生就像卫生纸,没事尽量少扯。
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/listen-to66.mp3|titles=listen to]
不要叫我宅女,请叫我居里夫人。
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/listen-to67.mp3|titles=listen to]
人家有的是背景,而我有的只是背影。
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/listen-to68.mp3|titles=listen to]
人生是一个茶几,上面放满了杯具。
[audio:http://www.chinesetolearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/listen-to69.mp3|titles=listen to]
无聊的时候就喜欢做的事情就是发呆。

Now, read the pinyin and the English translation, and then think it over. If you still can’t figure out where the funny lies on, then scroll down lower to find other clues.

谎言与誓言的差别在于:一个是听的人当真了,一个是说的人当真了。
huǎngyán yǔ shìyán de chābié zàiyú: yīgè shì tīng de rén dàng zhēn le, yī gè shì shuō de rén dàng zhēn le。
The difference between words of lies and words of oath (or promise) is: one is people hear it and regard it as true; the other is people say it and regard it as true.
  

我这辈子就有两件事不会,1,这也不会。2,那也不会。
wǒ zhè bèizi jiù yǒu liǎng jiàn shì bù huì,1,zhè yě bù huì。2,nà yě bù huì。
In this life of mine, there are only two things I don’t know how to do: 1, I don’t know how to do this; 2, I don’t know how to do that.

钱不是问题,问题是没钱。
qián bú shì wèntí, wèntí shì méi qián。
Money is not the problem; the problem is having no money.

我曾经跟一个人无数次地擦肩而过,衣服都擦破了,也没擦出火花。
wǒ céngjīng gēn yīgè rén wú shǔ cì dì cā jiān ér guò, yīfú dōu cā pò le,yě méi cā chū huǒhuā。 
Once I had countless times brushing past someone while I were passing; even my clothes were scratched and damaged, yet there were no sparks.

当你披上了婚纱,我也披上了袈裟。
dāng nǐ pī shàng le hūnshā,wǒ yě pī shàng le jiā shā。
When you put on the wedding gown, I also put on kasaya robe ( a patchwork outer vestment worn by a Buddhist monk).

说假话总会被人揭穿,戴假发总会被风揭穿。
shuō jiǎhuà zǒnghuì bèi rén jiēchuān, dài jiǎfà zǒnghuì bèi fēng jiēchuān。
Telling lies always will be exposed; wearing wigs always will be exposed by wind.

  
人生就像卫生纸,没事尽量少扯。
rénshēng jiùxiàng wèishēngzhǐ,méishì jǐnliàng shǎo chě。
Life is like toilet papers; when you have nothing to do, you better pull it less.

不要叫我宅女,请叫我居里夫人。
bùyào jiào wǒ zháinǚ,qǐng jiào wǒ jūlǐ fūrén。
Please don’t call me a stay at home girl, please call me Madame Curie.

人家有的是背景,而我有的只是背影。
rénjiā yǒu de shì bèijǐng,ér wǒ yǒu de zhǐshì bèiyǐng。
Others have their significant background, and I only have view of the back.

人生是一个茶几,上面放满了杯具。
rénshēng shì yīgè chájī, shàngmian fàng mǎn le bēijù。
Life is a teapoy (ornamental tripod with caddies for tea) or coffee table, numerous cups and utensils are placed on top of it.

无聊的时候就喜欢做的事情就是发呆。
wúliáo de shíhòu jiù xǐhuān zuò de shìqíng jiùshì fādāi。
When one got bored, the thing he or she likes to do the most is to be in a trance.

Your final clue:

谎言与誓言的差别在于:一个是听的人当真了,一个是说的人当真了。
This is a witty usage of words or characters.
It is all about the difference of one character. One character changes the meaning totally. In 谎言与誓言, one is 谎 and the other one is 誓. In 一个是听的人当真了,一个是说的人当真了, one is 听, and the other one is 说.

我这辈子就有两件事不会,1,这也不会。2,那也不会。

Here is a contrast. In the first part it say 我这辈子**就**有两件事不会 (only two things the speaker doesn’t know about), and the next part it offers two things as an example
….. but these two things are:

这也不会,那也不会 (don’t know this, don’t know that) is a Chinese saying which is used to chide people about not knowing anything.
For example, when a person is so foolish, and know nothing, you will say to him:

你这也不会那也不会, 真笨。
nǐ zhè yě bù huì nà yě bù huì,zhēn bèn.
You don’t know this, don’t know that; you are really stupid.

钱不是问题,问题是没钱。
This is a funny contrast usage of two parts in one saying.
Usually, when we say 钱不是问题, it means money is not a problem (refers to having enough money). However, the next part comes up with 问题是没钱 (the problem is having no money). so, this is a self conflicting sentence in a humorous way.

我曾经跟一个人无数次地擦肩而过,衣服都擦破了,也没擦出火花。
You need to know what 擦出火花 means in order to know the humor in this saying.
擦出火花 has at least two meanings. Literally it refers to strike two things together to make sparks. The second meaning of 擦出火花 means two people have romantic chemistry.

当你披上了婚纱,我也披上了袈裟。
You need to know 袈裟 is the robe that a monk wears. Normally speaking in China, monks don’t marry, and have to live an emotionally peaceful life in order to pursue the religious transcendence. So, when the only lady you love married to someone else, you lost all the interest in other females in the world, then this is your line; or say it after she planned to walk down the aisle with other man? When she knows your sincerity, you might have some chances?

说假话总会被人揭穿,戴假发总会被风揭穿。
If you ever wore a wig before, you should know what it means. If you don’t, ask some friends of yours that ever wore a wig before then? They might be able to tell you a story, such as ” Wigs gone with the wind”?

人生就像卫生纸,没事尽量少扯。
To understand this witty sentence, you need to know the usage of 扯. It has a few meanings. The original one is using the hand to pull something. If you use this definition then you probably don’t know for sure what 没事尽量少扯 means. If nothing to do, better not pull? Pull what you might ask? Maybe pull open a door? Especially If nothing to do, better not pull the door of a refrigerator? Sound reasonable, if you are trying to loose some weight? But, nah, this is not what it intends to say. We have to know the second definition of 扯 — chatting or gossiping. So, it means, life is like a roll of toilet paper, if you don’t 扯 (pull) toilet paper often, you can have it for a long long time. For life, silence is gold, better not chatting too much, or gossiping around.

不要叫我宅女,请叫我居里夫人。
宅女 means all day stay at home girls or ladies, while 居里夫人 means Madame Curie. You might ask how can Madame Curie have anything to do with all day stay at home females? Does that mean stay at home girls like to do science experiment? Or like to get radiation from using microwaves? Nah. We need to know 居里 can be Curie, but it can also be — live inside, as 居 is a verb means live, and 里 is a preposition means inside. Also 夫人 is a polite way to address females, right?

人家有的是背景,而我有的只是背影。
This comical saying is all about the sharp contrast. Other people have ample 背景background that they can rely on, while the speaker just has shadowy and filmy 背影 to call his or her own.

人生是一个茶几,上面放满了杯具。
It is a sad metaphor and a pun joke. For the tea table or coffee table, it is natural to have tea cups or plates placed upon it. However, in life, there is a phrase called 悲 剧 [bēijù] which means tragedy. [bēijù] is also the pronunciation for 杯具 which means cups and utensils. For people who have pessimistic attitude, this might be a heartfelt saying for them.

无聊的时候就喜欢做的事情就是发呆。
发呆 means a person is doing nothing, and looks he or she is in a trance or daydreams about something. 发呆 is not really a thing to do, but a stage of boredom.

Hope you enjoyed and laughed a bit about today’s mild hilarious Chinese witty, comical, wise sayings. To make it more complete, you might like some English counterpart:

Did you hear about the guy whose whole left side was cut off? He’s all right now.

I couldn’t quite remember how to throw a boomerang, but eventually it came back to me.
duncan – Victoria, BC

I was going to look for my missing watch, but I could never find the time.
Derek – Arizona

There was a sign on the lawn at a drug re-hab center that said ‘Keep off the Grass’.
Dave H – Hayward CA

I used to have a fear of hurdles, but I got over it.

He drove his expensive car into a tree and found out how the Mercedes bends.

A small boy swallowed some coins and was taken to a hospital. When his grandmother telephoned to ask how he was a nurse said ‘No change yet’.

There was once a cross-eyed teacher who couldn’t control his pupils.

Did you hear about the guy who got hit in the head with a can of soda? He was lucky it was a soft drink.

These English funny pun jokes come from http://www.punoftheday.com

凤姐和小哥一起讲笑话

Leona Lewis – Happy (Lyrics)

Posted in English song, Funny Chinese sayings and jokes, One Chinese sentence a day | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

文章 Wen Zhang 三百六十五里路 san bai liu shi wu li lu Three hundred sixty five miles of road: lyrics, pinyin, English translation, quotes of roads, 腾格尔 teng ge er, Eight thousand miles of road clouds and moon, Elton John- Goodbye Yellow Brick Road + Lyrics

文章-三百六十五里路+故鄉的雲

三百六十五里路
sān băi liù shí wŭ lĭ lù
Three hundred sixty five miles of road

(note: The li (里, lǐ) is a traditional Chinese measurement unit for distance, which has varied over time but now has a standardized length of 500 meters or half a kilometer (approx. 1640 feet).)

文章
Wén Zhāng

睡意矇朧的星辰 阻擋不了我行程 多年飄泊日夜餐風露宿
shuìyì mēnglóng de xīngchén, zŭdăng bù liăo wŏ xíngchéng, duō nián piāobó rìyè cān fēng lùsù

Sleepy, blurry stars can’t stop my journey. Many years I have been drifting. Days and nights, I ate in the wind and slept outdoors.

為了理想我寧願忍受寂寞 飲盡那份孤獨
wèi le lĭxiăng wŏ nìngyuàn rĕnshòu jìmò, yĭnjìn nà fèn gūdú
For the ideals I would rather endure loneliness and drink up that share of solitary.

抖落異地的塵土 踏上遙遠的路途 滿懷赤情追求我的夢想
dŏuluò yìdì de chéntŭ, tà shàng yáoyuăn de lùtú, mănhuái chìqíng zhuīqiú wŏ de mèngxiăng
Shaking off the dust of foreign land, I set foot on the road to the faraway and pursue my dream with full red passion

三百六十五日年年地度過 過一日行一程
sān băi liù shí wŭrì niánnián dì dùguò, guò yīrì xíng yīchéng
Three hundred sixty five days, year after year I went through; when I lived a day, I walked a period of journey.

三百六十五里路呀 越過春夏秋冬
sān băi liù shí wŭ lĭ lù ya, yuè guò chūn xià qiū dōng
Three hundred sixty five miles of road, it leads me through spring, summer, autumn and winter.

三百六十五里路呀 豈能讓它虛度
sān băi liù shí wŭ lĭ lù ya, qĭ néng ràng tā xūdù
Three hundred sixty five miles of road, how can I let it pass in vain?

那年萬丈的雄心 從來沒有消失過 即使時光漸去依然執著
nà nián wàn zhàng de xióngxīn cónglái méiyŏu xiāoshī guò, jí shĭ shíguāng jiān qù yīrán zhízhuó
That year’s extremely high great ambition has never disappeared. Even the time gradually went away, I am still persistent.

自從離鄉背景已過了多少 三百六十五日
zìcóng lí xiāng bèi jĭng yĭ guò le duōshăo sān băi liù shí wŭ rì
Since I departed from hometown, how many three hundred sixty five days have passed?

三百六十五里路呀 從故鄉到異鄉
sān băi liù shí wŭ lĭ lù ya, cōng gùxiāng dào yìxiāng
Ah, three hundred sixty five miles of road, I went from hometown to foreign land.

三百六十五里路呀 從少年到白頭
sān băi liù shí wŭ lĭ lù ya, cōng shàonián dào báitóu
Ah, three hundred sixty five miles of road, I lived from youth to white head age.

有多少
yŏu duō shăo
I have how many

三百六十五里路呀 越過春夏秋冬
sān băi liù shí wŭ lĭ lù ya, yuèguò chūn xià qiū dōng
Ah, three hundred sixty five miles of road, it leads me through spring, summer, autumn, and winter.

三百六十五里路呀 豈能讓它虛度
sān băi liù shí wŭ lĭ lù ya, qĭ néng ràng tā xūdù
Ah, three hundred sixty five milrd of road, how can I let it pass in vain?

多少個
duō shăo gè
How many

三百六十五里路呀 從故鄉到異鄉
sān băi liù shí wŭ lĭ lù ya, cōng gùxiāng dào yìxiāng
Ah, three hundred sixty five miles of road, it leads me from hometown to foreign land.

三百六十五里路呀 從少年到白頭
sān băi liù shí wŭ lĭ lù ya, cōng shàonián dào báitóu
Ah, three hundred sixty five miles of road, it leads me from youth to white head age.

三百六十五里長路 飲盡那份孤獨
sān băi liù shí wŭ lĭ cháng lù, yĭn jìn nà fèn gūdú
Ah, (along the) three hundred sixty five miles of road, I drank up that share of solitary.

Translated by Shu

腾格尔 – 八千里路云和月

八千里路云和月
bā qiān lǐ lù yún hé yuè
Eight thousand miles of road clouds and moon
腾格尔
téng gé ěr

八千里路—–雲和月—-
bā qiān lǐ lù—–yún hé yuè—-
Eight thousand miles of road ——— clouds and moon ——

你是清曉待發的帆
nǐ shì qīngxiǎo dāi fā de fān
You are the sailboat that is waiting to sail at dawn.

我是天涯飄泊的嵐
wǒ shì tiānyá piāobó de lán
I am the drifting mountain mist at the other end of the world

我要癡癡的 纏在你後面
wǒ yào chīchī de chán zài nǐ hòumiàn
I want to foolishly tangle to your back

驅你向前 歲歲月月 日日年年
qū nǐ xiàng qián suìsuì yuèyuè  rìrì niánnián
Push you forward, year after year, month after month, day after day, and year after year.

驅你向前 歲歲月月 日日年年
qū nǐ xiàng qián suìsuì yuèyuè  rìrì niánnián
Drive you forward, year after year, month after month, day after day, and year after year.

八千里路—–雲和月—-
bā qiān lǐ lù—–yún hé yuè—-
Eight thousand miles of road ——— clouds and moon ——

Translated by Shu

Quotes of road:
“A person without a sense of humor is like a wagon without springs. It’s jolted by every pebble on the road.”
Henry Ward Beecher quotes

“The safest road to Hell is the gradual one – the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts”
C.S. Lewis quotes

“To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent.”
Buddha quotes

“a good friend is a connection to life- a tie to the past,a road to the future,the key to sanity in a totally insane world”
Lois Wyse quotes

“The road to success is always under construction”
Lily Tomlin quotes

“A good plan is like a road map: it shows the final destination and usually the best way to get there.”
H. Stanley Judd quotes

“The royal road to a man’s heart is to talk to him about the things he treasures most.”
Dale Carnegie quotes

“In the name of the best within you, do not sacrifice this world to those who are its worst. In the name of the values that keep you alive, do not let your vision of man be distorted by the ugly, the cowardly, the mindless in those who have never achieved his title. Do not lose your knowledge that man’s proper estate is an upright posture, an intransigent mind and a step that travels unlimited roads. Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish, in lonely frustration for the life you deserved, but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the nature of your battle. The world you desired can be won, it exists, it is real, it is possible, it’s yours.”
Ayn Rand quotes

These quotes come from http://thinkexist.com/quotes/with/keyword/road/

Elton John- Goodbye Yellow Brick Road + Lyrics

Posted in Chinese songs, English song, Quotes | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on 文章 Wen Zhang 三百六十五里路 san bai liu shi wu li lu Three hundred sixty five miles of road: lyrics, pinyin, English translation, quotes of roads, 腾格尔 teng ge er, Eight thousand miles of road clouds and moon, Elton John- Goodbye Yellow Brick Road + Lyrics