can / may / possible / able to / not bad / pretty good

how (wonderful etc) / what (a great idea etc) / however (difficult it may be etc) / (in interrogative sentences) how (much etc) / to what extent

(prefix) can; may; able to; -able / to approve; to permit / to suit / (particle used for emphasis) certainly; very / but; however

to dare / daring / (polite) may I venture

that's fine / may as well / (reduplicated) regardless of whether ... or ...

Excuse me, may I ask...?

the not-very-distant past / modern times, excluding recent decades / (in the context of Chinese history) the period from the Opium Wars until the May 4th Movement (mid-19th century to 1919) / capitalist times (pre-1949)

period of time (may be months, or mere seconds) / spare time / skill / labor / effort

to have all one's wishes (idiom) / best wishes / all the best / may all your hopes be fulfilled

(bound form) wish; hope; desire / to be willing / to wish (that sth may happen); may ... / vow; pledge

may you enjoy boundless longevity (idiom) / long may you live

to urge (an activity that may be beneficial, harmful or neutral); to encourage; to agitate; to instigate; to incite / to beat; to flap (wings, a fan etc)

only the official is allowed to light the fire / Gods may do what cattle may not / quod licet Iovi, non licet bovi

(old) third person singular pronoun ("he" or "she") / second person singular pronoun ("you") / (May 4th period) third person singular feminine pronoun ("she") / (Classical Chinese) introductory particle with no specific meaning / (preceding a noun) that

may not

apartment building; block of flats (may be a public housing block or a condominium etc) (CL:套)

backscratcher (made from bamboo etc) / (may also refer to other products that are of benefit to old people, such as padded cloth shoes, mobility tricycle etc)

5-1 (May 1st)

fourth of May, cf 五四運動｜五四运动, national renewal movement that started with 4th May 1919 protest against the Treaty of Versailles

lit. (may you) have abundance year after year / (an auspicious saying for the Lunar New Year)

must not / may not / not to be allowed / cannot

Help others, and others may help you (idiom).

fortune as unpredictable as the weather, every day may bring fortune or calamity (idiom); sth unexpected may happen at any moment

May Fourth Movement / Chinese national renewal movement that started with 4th May 1919 protest against the Treaty of Versailles

public prosecutor; public procurator (judicial officer whose job may involve both criminal investigation and public prosecution)

may be done once and once only; just this once

a single slip may cause everlasting sorrow (idiom)

plait / braid / pigtail / a mistake or shortcoming that may be exploited by an opponent / handle / CL: 根, 條｜条

May

Illness enters by the mouth (idiom). Mind what you eat! / fig. A loose tongue may cause a lot of trouble.

possible / probable / possibly / probably / may / might

no matter what may happen (idiom)

Political and Legal Affairs Commission (may refer to the national-level Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission, responsible for overseeing law enforcement, judicial affairs and domestic security, or a corresponding body at a lower administrative level)

abbr. for 五卅運動｜五卅运动, The May Thirtieth Movement (1925)

see 龍門縣｜龙门县 / see 龍門石窟｜龙门石窟 / see 龍門山｜龙门山 / Dragon Gate, mythical gate at the crest of a waterfall over which a carp may leap to become a dragon; (fig.) gateway to success or greatness

cannot maintain (sth) / unable to keep / more likely than not / may well

auxiliary verb introducing future action: may (be able to) / will (cause) / should (enable) / going to

to sculpt or mold a statue (by shaping a pliable material such as clay, plaster or wax, which may later be cast in metal – as distinct from carving in stone or wood) / a statue created through such a process

may I offer a bit of advice

voice (as sth that may be described as husky 沙啞｜沙哑 or deep 低沉 etc) / (physics) sound ray

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (American media company)

it may be said

May you have a prosperous New Year! (New Year's greeting)

May Fourth Movement / Chinese national renewal movement that started with 4th May 1919 protest against the Treaty of Versailles

lit. an ant hole may cause the collapse of a great dike (idiom) / fig. huge damage may result from a moment's negligence

Live as long as the Zhongnan Mountains! (idiom) / Long may you live!

lit. (may the) five blessings descend upon this home (namely: longevity, wealth, health, virtue, and a natural death) / (an auspicious saying for the Lunar New Year)

be that as it may

Although the peony is beautiful, it depends entirely on help from the green leaves (idiom). However brilliant you may be, you can't do anything without support from others.

May Day / International Labor Day (May 1)

lit. lotus roots may break, but the fiber remains joined (idiom); lovers part, but still long for one another

International Labor Day (May Day)

to die without progeny / (offensive) may you die childless / may you be the last of your family line

return what you borrowed on time, you may borrow again next time (idiom)

(in elections for village committees in the PRC since the 1990s) unrestricted nomination, a type of election where 1. everyone in the community is eligible to nominate somebody 2. voting is done by writing the name of one's nominee on the ballot, and 3. one's nominee can be anyone in the community (Nominees who receive the highest number of votes may be thereby elected or, more often, presented as the candidates in a further round of voting.) / (in other contexts) selection of the best contender in a process open to all comers / (in the entertainment industry) open audition

Xiaoman or Lesser Full Grain, 8th of the 24 solar terms 二十四節氣｜二十四节气 21st May-5th June

Guyu or Grain Rain, 6th of the 24 solar terms 二十四節氣｜二十四节气 20th April-4th May

a great hero may appear timid, the wise may appear stupid (idiom); the general public may not recognize great talent

lit. for some things a foot may be too short, and for the other an inch will suffice (proverb) / fig. everyone has their strong and weak points / everything has its advantages and disadvantages

Illness enters by the mouth, trouble comes out by the mouth (idiom). A loose tongue may cause a lot of trouble.

if I may be so bold

sentence-final particle that conveys informality, warmth, friendliness or intimacy / may also indicate that one is stating a fact that the other person is not aware of

(idiom) a clever person may become the victim of his own ingenuity; cleverness may overreach itself; too smart for one's own good

the sparrow may be small but all its vital organs are there (idiom) / small but complete in every detail

Han dynasty name for countries in far West / may refer to Silk Road states or Alexandria or the Roman empire

lit. you may go undetected during the new moon, but at full moon you'll be found out (idiom) / fig. you can't put it off forever / sooner or later you'll have to deal with it

Youth Day (May 4th), PRC national holiday for young people aged 14 to 28, who get half a day off

Lixia or Start of Summer, 7th of the 24 solar terms 二十四節氣｜二十四节气 5th-20th May

to take a lot of trouble (over sb or sth) / may I trouble you (to do sth)

5th earthly branch: 7-9 a.m., 3rd solar month (5th April-4th May), year of the Dragon / ancient Chinese compass point: 120°

(idiom) great intelligence may appear to be stupidity

(old) to stand up (after kowtowing) / You may rise.

Dear Sirs / To Whom It May Concern

lit. you plant a garden and the flowers do not bloom, you poke a stick in the mud and it grows into a tree / fig. things do not always turn out as one would expect / well-laid plans may fail, and success may come where you least expect it

lit. water may keep the boat afloat but may also sink it (proverb) / fig. the people can support a regime or overturn it / if sth is used properly, one can benefit from it, otherwise it can do harm / things can be double-edged

large though its mesh may be, no criminal can slip through the wide net of justice

Trouble issues from the mouth (idiom). A loose tongue may cause a lot of trouble.

lit. don't fight, won't make friends (idiom); an exchange of blows may lead to friendship / no discord, no concord

may I ask

a thousand tries leads to one success (idiom, humble expr.); Even without any notable ability on my part, I may still get it right sometimes by good luck.

(neologism c. 2009) wife of a gay man (the man may marry to conform with social expectations, and the woman often enters the marriage not knowing he is gay)

lit. an old steed in the stable still aspires to gallop 1000 miles (idiom); fig. old people may still cherish high aspirations

Sichuan great earthquake, the magnitude 8 earthquake of May 2008 at Wenchuan 汶川, Sichuan, that killed more than 80,000 people / same as 四川大地震

"Mr Democracy", phrase used during the May 4th Movement 五四運動｜五四运动 / abbr. for 德謨克拉西｜德谟克拉西 / see also 賽先生｜赛先生

bamboos placed across wooden frames on which grain may be stored in damp climates

one may know a person for a long time without understanding his true nature (idiom)

May / fifth month (of the lunar year)

although small, a steelyard weight may tip a hundred pounds (idiom) / apparently insignificant details can have a large impact / for want of a nail the battle was lost

lit. the meat falls apart as it stews, but it all stays in the pot (idiom) / fig. some of us may lose or gain, but in any case the benefits don't go to outsiders

lit. even a scrawny camel is bigger than a horse (idiom) / fig. even after suffering a loss, a rich person is still better off than ordinary people / a cultured person may come down in the world, but he is still superior to the common people

(honorific) May I ask?

lit. don't tie your shoelaces in a melon patch, and don't adjust your hat under a plum tree (idiom) / fig. don't do anything that might arouse suspicion / innocent acts may be misconstrued

(formal) you may dispense with curtseying

What (noble errand) brings you here? / May I help you? / What can I do for you?

Although the peony is beautiful, it depends entirely on help from the green leaves (idiom). However brilliant you may be, you can't do anything without support from others.

Qing emergency cabinet set up in May 1911 to confront the Xinhai rebels

what is your surname? / (May I ask) your surname?

a great hero may appear timid (idiom); the really brave person remains level-headed

to spend effort / to take trouble / May I trouble you to...? (as part of polite request) / Please would you mind...?

May 7 cadre school (farm where urban cadres had to undertake manual labor and study ideology during the Cultural Revolution) (abbr. for 五七幹部學校｜五七干部学校)