成语、谚语的翻译要注意民族性。成语和谚语经常使人联想起该民族的一些特定的历史、经济、文化、风俗习惯和地理环境状况。汉英成语、谚语的对译可以使译文地道，但也给译文染上异国情调，或是与译文民族的历史、典故之类混淆不清，时常使读者感觉有点张冠李戴而让人莫明其妙。所以不能一味地追求“地道”， 给汉语的英译文添上一些盎格鲁撒克逊人的民族特色，梁山泊英雄还是不同于罗宾汉的行侠仗义，这时候还得直译，以保持汉文化 的一些民族特色。如“易如反掌”就可直译成easy as turning over one's hand(palm)。英译文也是形象易懂。下面的例子经英语本族人试读，都能为他们理解并接受。

半途而废 to stop halfway 

—语双关 a pun on a word 

实事求是 to seek truth from facts 

灰心丧气 to become disheartened 

有眼无珠to have eyes but not see 

异口同声with one voice;in unison 

芸芸众生 all living creatures (beings)

水中捞月 to catch the moon in the water 

缘木求鱼 lo climh (up) a tree to catch fish 

门可罗雀 You tan catch sparrows in the doorway,

一衣带水 only a narrow strip of water in between

一见如故 At our first meeting it is like old times.

坐山观虎斗 Sit on a hillside to watch the tiger fight.

切生牛犊不怕虎 New-bom calves makt little of tigers.

因小失大 to lase the main goal because of small gains

走马观花 look at the flowers while riding on horseback

欲擒故纵 to set the enemy free in order to catch him later

拔苗助长 to try to help the rice seedlings grow by pulling ihpjn upward