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守株待兔 (shǒu zhū dài tù) — (idiom) to trust to chance and wait idly for opportunities instead of taking initiative; (literal) to guard a tree stump waiting for rabbits — from the fable

Definition

A classical 成语 from a fable: a farmer who waits by a tree stump for a rabbit to crash into it, then quits farming. Use it to criticize passively waiting for luck instead of acting.

idiom
to trust to chance and wait idly for opportunities instead of taking initiative
phrase
(literal) to guard a tree stump waiting for rabbits — from the fable

Examples

  • 守株待兔，。
    Wǒ men bù néng shǒu zhū dài tù, bì xū zì jǐ chū qù zhǎo jī huì.
    We can't just wait around for luck; we have to go out and find opportunities ourselves.
  • 守株待兔。
    Tā zhè zhǒng shǒu zhū dài tù de xīn tài ràng tā làng fèi le sān nián shí jiān.
    His mentality of waiting for a windfall cost him three wasted years.
  • 守株待兔，。
    Bú yào zài shǒu zhū dài tù le, zhǔ dòng qù lián xì kè hù ba.
    Stop waiting for things to come to you; take the initiative and contact clients.

Origin

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 宀宀miánroof; building
  • 寸寸cùnhand

守 pairs 宀, a roof or building, with 寸, a hand, to show a hand guarding a place.

Open 守 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
木木mùtree
Sound part声符shēngfú
朱
朱zhū株zhū
Same sound today

The left part 木 shows it relates to a tree, and the right part 朱 gives the sound.

Open 株 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
彳彳chì
Sound part声符shēngfú
寺
寺sì待dài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

待 is built from 彳 on the left and 寺 on the right; 彳 is tied to the meaning, and 寺 gives the sound.

Open 待 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 兔 comes from drawing a rabbit.

Open 兔 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Idioms & Set Phrases

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