俗语 súyǔ common saying
common saying; proverb; colloquial speech
How to remember 俗语: 俗 social customs + 语 language = common saying.
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How it is used
- Colloquial set expressions and folk sayings - the linguistic category - 这是一句俗语 (zhè shì yī jù súyǔ) this is a colloquial saying.
- Overlaps with 俗话, but 俗语 is more the technical/classificatory term (alongside 谚语, 成语), while 俗话 is what you say when quoting one.
- Written/academic when naming the category; the sayings themselves are informal.