諺語 · a single proverb
話不投機半句多
What does 話不投機半句多 (huà bù tóu jī bàn jù duō) mean?
話不投機半句多 (huà bù tóu jī bàn jù duō) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "if talk not resonant, even half a sentence is too many." In use it means: When there is no rapport, even a half sentence is too much; conversation requires resonance. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Water note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Rat.
Literally: "if talk not resonant, even half a sentence is too many."
The reading
Two thousand words with the wrong person leave both parties exhausted and unheard. Half a word with the right one and the whole afternoon is transformed. Conversation is not the transfer of information but the meeting of two minds that recognize something in each other. When that meeting fails, length cannot compensate for the absence.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Yuan Dynasty 元·施耐庵《水滸傳》 (Shuǐ Hǔ Zhuàn, Water Margin)
Sits beside
Keep reading
Return to the Proverb Pond to draw another of the eighty-seven, or hear one read aloud. Read the rest of its chapter in Friendship, Trust & Speech, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Rat, Year of the Ox, and Year of the Tiger.
Questions
Is 話不投機半句多 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 話不投機半句多 (huà bù tóu jī bàn jù duō) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語), and it comes from Yuan Dynasty 元·施耐庵《水滸傳》 (Shuǐ Hǔ Zhuàn, Water Margin). It is living Chinese heritage, given here with per-character pinyin and its source so you can trust the line, not a phrase invented in English.
How do you pronounce 話不投機半句多?
In Mandarin it is huà bù tóu jī bàn jù duō. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 話不投機半句多 aloud in Mandarin.