Developing personal chengyu vocabulary bank

Objectives for Your Chengyu Bank (what every entry must include)

• Form: the idiom + pinyin + literal gloss.
• Meaning & tone: concise English sense + polarity (praise/critique/warning/method/emotion).
• Grammar slot: predicate / adverbial / modifier / framing.
• Register: colloquial / neutral / formal / literary.
• Example: one sentence you actually would say/write (from reading or your own).
• Tags: function, topic/domain, register, slot, nuance.

Seed List (start with 30 high-yield items)

• Method: 循序渐进 (xún xù jiàn jìn), 稳扎稳打 (wěn zhā wěn dǎ), 统筹兼顾 (tǒng chóu jiān gù).
• Risk/attitude: 未雨绸缪 (wèi yǔ chóu móu), 居安思危 (jū ān sī wēi), 因地制宜 (yīn dì zhì yí).
• Result/clarity: 水到渠成 (shuǐ dào qú chéng), 一清二楚 (yì qīng èr chǔ), 名副其实 (míng fù qí shí).
• Critique/warning: 纸上谈兵 (zhǐ shàng tán bīng), 画蛇添足 (huà shé tiān zú), 欲速则不达 (yù sù zé bù dá).
• Emotion/voice: 忐忑不安 (tǎn tè bù ān), 泰然自若 (tài rán zì ruò), 喜出望外 (xǐ chū wàng wài).
  Add more based on your domains (business, campus, travel, creative writing).

Entry Template (copy-paste for each idiom)

• Idiom: 有条不紊 (yǒu tiáo bù wěn)
• Meaning: well-organized; orderly
• Function/Polarity: method → positive-neutral
• Grammar Slot: predicate / modifier
• Register: neutral–formal
• Example: “在资源紧张的情况下，流程依然有条不紊。”
• Tags: method, work, predicate, neutral-formal

Tagging System (keep retrieval fast)

Use four tag axes:

1. Function: praise, critique, warning, method, emotion, result.
2. Slot: predicate, adverbial, modifier, framing.
3. Register: colloquial, neutral, formal, literary.
4. Domain: work, study, creative, news, family.
   Example combined tag: method/predicate/formal/work.

Pipeline: Collect → Curate → Review → Use

1. Collect (daily reading): highlight 2–3 idioms; clip context.
2. Curate (same day, 5 min): add entry with your own sentence.
3. Review (SRS): new (1d) → 3d → 7d → 14d → 30d.
4. Use (activation): write/say one sentence with today’s cards in a real message or journal.

Spaced Repetition Card Types (minimal but effective)

• Recognition (front → back): English gist + slot → idiom.
  Front: “orderly; predicate/modifier” → Back: 有条不紊 (yǒu tiáo bù wěn).
• Cloze (context): “发布前演练充分，临门阶段（ ）。→ 水到渠成.”
• Production (speak/write): Prompt: “Warn against feature creep (design crit).” → Output line with 画蛇添足.

Weekly Maintenance (30–40 minutes total)

• Mon–Thu: add 2 entries/day (8 total).
• Fri: prune misfits; merge near-duplicates; fix tags.
• Sat: 20-min SRS review + 5 spoken lines using the week’s idioms.
• Sun: write a 120-word paragraph using 3 idioms in different slots.

Quality Filters (what stays in your bank)

• High frequency in your domains (you’ve seen it ≥3×).
• Clear polarity (not easily misread).
• Fits your voice (you can say it without over-formality).
• Has a clean example (authentic or self-written).

Growth Tracks (beginner → advanced)

• Track A (work/academic): prioritize 循序渐进、统筹兼顾、有条不紊、名副其实、一清二楚.
• Track B (creative): add 风轻云淡、波光粼粼、柳暗花明、心平气和.
• Track C (debate/policy): add 居安思危、举足轻重 (jǔ zú qīng zhòng)、因地制宜.

Avoid Bloat (keep it lean)

• Cap the active deck at ~150 idioms. Archive rare/literary items; re-activate only when your reading uses them.
• Delete entries you haven’t used or reviewed in 90 days (unless they’re curriculum-critical).

Mini Audit (before adding a new idiom)

• Do I know its polarity?
• Do I know a natural slot and register?
• Can I write one sentence I’d actually say?
• Which two tags make it easy to find later?

Sample Micro-Bank (5 entries to model)

1. 循序渐进 (xún xù jiàn jìn) — step by step; method; adverbial; neutral–formal. 例: “试点后循序渐进扩展。”
2. 未雨绸缪 (wèi yǔ chóu móu) — prepare early; framing; formal. 例: “未雨绸缪，本周做演练。”
3. 名副其实 (míng fù qí shí) — truly deserving; predicate; neutral–formal. 例: “这项荣誉名副其实。”
4. 画蛇添足 (huà shé tiān zú) — overdo and spoil; critique; predicate/adverbial. 例: “再加光效就画蛇添足。”
5. 一清二楚 (yì qīng èr chǔ) — crystal clear; predicate/result. 例: “复盘后问题一清二楚。”

Tools & Formats (choose one and stick to it)

• Spreadsheet/Notion: sortable by tags; quick filters for function + slot.
• Card app (SRS): one card per idiom with Cloze + Production variants.
• Markdown vault: one idiom = one file; tags in front matter; daily note links examples.

Activation Drills (make the bank pay off)

• Three-line update: report plan (循序渐进), risk (居安思危), result (水到渠成).
• Contrast pair writing: 锦上添花 vs 画蛇添足 in two sentences.
• Slot shuffle: rewrite one idiom in predicate, then as modifier.

Takeaway: Curate a small, tagged, example-rich chengyu bank you actually use. Track function, slot, register, and polarity, review with SRS, and activate through daily sentences so the idioms become tools—not ornaments.