一年之计在于春 (Yì nián zhī jì zàiyú chūn) A Year’s Plan Starts with Spring (Beginner)
Key Learning Points (Preview):
日 (rì): n day/ date
年 (nián): n year
早晨 (zǎochen): n early morning
“一年之计在于春，一日之计在于晨 (Yì nián zhī jì zàiyú chūn, yí rì zhī jì zàiyú chén) A year’s plan starts with spring; a day’s plan starts with early morning” is a popular Chinese proverb that shows how Chinese people think of the changing of the seasons during a year and how they relate to one’s daily life. “一年之计在于春 (yì nián zhī jì zàiyú chūn) A year’s plan starts with spring ” was “总结 (zǒngjié) summed up” by the farmers during their cultivation of crops. It emphasizes the importance of spring out of the four seasons and that a good “收获 (shōuhuò) harvest” depends on the spring sowing. “一日之计在于晨 (yí rì zhī jì zàiyú chén) A day’s plan starts with early morning” refers to the best time of a day being the early morning, and that it is good to make a whole day’s “计划 (jìhuà) plan” early in the morning. What’s more, in Chinese language, teenagers are compared with the spring, since they are full of hopes and dreams for their lives ahead of them. That’s why the Chinese word “青春 (qīngchūn) youthful” which contains the character “春 (chūn) spring” is used to describe the young people who are at the spring season of their life.
Key Learning Points:
日 (rì): n day/ date
It means day or date. And people usually use “日子 (rìzi)” in Chinese when referring to “day.”
Wǒmen de rìzi yuè guò yuè hónɡhuo.
1. 我们 的 日子 越 过 越 红火。
Our days are more and more prosperous.
Nǐ zhīdào jīnnián de HSK kǎoshì zài nǎ yì tiān ma?
2. A: 你 知道 今年 的 HSK 考试 在 哪 一 天 吗？
Do you know which day the HSK exam is on this year?
Tīngshuō shì zài sìyuè shíqīrì.
B: 听 说 是 在 四月 十七日。
I heard that it is on 17 April.
年 (nián): n year
The Chinese word for “year” is “年 (nián).” “明年 (míngnián),” “今年 (jīnnián)” and “去年 (qùnián)” separately mean “next year,” “this year” and “last year.” The character “年 (nián)” comes from a story of a beast, and you can check out the article about this story.
Wǒ míngnián yào cānjiā zhōngwén xuéxíbān.
我 明年 要 参加 中文 学习班。
I am going to take Chinese classes next year.
早晨 (zǎochen): n early morning
“早 (zǎo)” means early and “晨 (chén)” means morning. Another word “早上 (zǎoshàng)” has the same meaning as “早晨 (zǎochen).”
Example:
Zǎochen de kōngqì hěn qīngxīn.
早 晨 的 空气 很 清新。
The early morning air is very fresh.
生词 (shēngcí) Vocabulary:
总结 (zǒngjié): v to sum up
收获 (shōuhuò): v/n to harvest/ harvest
计划 (jìhuà): v/n to plan/ plan
青春 (qīngchūn): adj/n youthful/ youth
Chinese Idiom
HSK Test
General Chinese (Beginner Level)
General Chinese (Intermediate Level)