飲水思源
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Chinese[edit]
to drink water | to think; to consider | root; source; origin | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
trad. (飲水思源) | 飲水 | 思 | 源 | |
simp. (饮水思源) | 饮水 | 思 | 源 | |
Literally: “drink water, consider the source”. |
Etymology[edit]
From "Tune in the Key of Zhǐ" (徵調曲) written by Yu Xin (庾信) during the Northern and Southern dynasties:
i.e. remember where and how the fruit/water came from. Don’t just be thankful for the fruit/water. The idiom makes use of the latter half: be thankful for all the elements and processes (both past and present) that allowed you to enjoy that humble cup of water.
Pronunciation[edit]
Idiom[edit]
飲水思源
Synonyms[edit]
Dialectal synonyms of 飲水思源 (“to remember where one's happiness comes from; to not forget one's roots or heritage”) [map]
Variety | Location | Words |
---|---|---|
Formal (Written Standard Chinese) | 飲水思源, 飲流懷源, 飲水知源 | |
Mandarin | Taiwan | 飲水思源 |
Singapore | 飲水思源 | |
Cantonese | Hong Kong | 飲水思源 |
Southern Min | Xiamen | 食果子拜樹頭,食米飯敬鋤頭, 食果子拜樹頭, 食水果拜樹頭 |
Quanzhou | 食果子拜樹頭,食米飯敬鋤頭, 食果子拜樹頭 | |
Zhangzhou | 食果子拜樹頭,食米飯敬鋤頭, 食果子拜樹頭 | |
Taipei | 食果子拜樹頭,食米飯拜田頭 | |
Tainan | 食果子拜樹頭 |
Descendants[edit]
- → Vietnamese: uống nước nhớ nguồn (calque)
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