found: Cantonese:(Xiehouyu is a special form of idiomatic expressions in Chinese. It is made up of two segments, the first giving a clue, the second providing an answer, with a slight pause in between. The clue phrase could be in the form of a metaphor, generating a message that may be applied to its immediate narrative context or different general discoursal and social contexts. If a metaphor is a message-pointer in function, then a xiehouyu expression is made up of a message-pointer and a message-carrier.) (DLC)2023532857
found: Chinese xiehouyu (歇后语) and the interpretation of metaphor and metonymy, 2015(Xiehouyu is a linguistic phenomenon unique to Chinese. A xiehouyu normally follows or precedes something said or some statement, which serves as the topic, and the saying is a kind of vehicle plus explanation about the topic.)
found: The Magic Lotus Lantern and Other Tales from the Han Chinese, 2006:(Chinese proverbs can be split into chengyu (accepted phrases), yanyu (familiar sayings), suyu (popular sayings), and xiehouyu (two-part allegorical sayings). Unique to the Chinese language, xiehouyu proverbs are vivid with images and dramatic results.) (DLC)2006011702
found: The contemporary Chinese dictionary (Chinese -- English edition), 2002:(xiehouyu, two-part allegorical saying, of which the first part, always stated, describes a riddle, while the second part, sometimes unstated, carries a message as the answer to the riddle, e.g. like a clay idol fording a river--hardly able to save oneself (let along anyone else); the nephew lighting a lantern--illuminating his uncle (this last phrase has the same pronunciation as "zhaojiu", meaning "as before".)
found: A Chinese-English dictionary of enigmatic folk similes (xiehouyu), 1991:(...true xiehouyu consists of a metaphorical image followed by an explanatory resolution of the metaphor... (They) are not used alone but always in reference to a specific person, subject, or situation, usually with such linking predicates as xiang, "seems" or "like"; hao bi, " can well be compared to"; or simply shi. "to be," implying "as for X, its case of (being like)..." The speaker's true meaning lies exactly in the delayed or unexpressed resolution of the metaphorical first part (or a punning homonym thereof).
found: Chinese xiehouyu, 2009:(examples of xiehouyu: hai di lao yue-- bai fei si (fishing for the moon in the sea--a vain effort); gou zui li tu bu chu xiang ya--mei hao hua (no ivory tusk comes from a dog's mouth--having an uncivil tongue);
