yī píng zi bù xiǎng , bàn píng zi huàng dang
lit. a full bottle makes no sound; a half-filled bottle sloshes (idiom)
fig. empty vessels make the most noise
一
yī
one
瓶
píng
variant of 瓶[ping2]
子
zi
noun suffix, as in 椅子[yi3 zi5] "chair"
不
bù
no; not so
响
xiǎng
echo
,
,
半
bàn
half
晃
huàng
to sway
荡
dang
to wash