未雨绸缪
wèi yǔ chóu móu
Pinyin

Definition

未雨绸缪
 - 
wèi yǔ chóu móu
  1. lit. before it rains, bind around with silk (idiom, from Book of Songs 詩經|诗经); fig. to plan ahead
  2. to prepare for a rainy day

Character Decomposition

Related Words (20)

下雨
xià yǔ
  1. 1 to rain
未
wèi
  1. 1 not yet
  2. 2 did not
  3. 3 have not
  4. 4 not
  5. 5 8th earthly branch: 1-3 p.m., 6th solar month (7th July-6th August), year of the Sheep
  6. 6 ancient Chinese compass point: 210°
未来
wèi lái
  1. 1 future
  2. 2 tomorrow
  3. 3 CL:個|个[gè]
  4. 4 approaching
  5. 5 coming
  6. 6 pending
雨
yǔ
  1. 1 rain
  2. 2 CL:陣|阵[zhèn],場|场[cháng]
冒雨
mào yǔ
  1. 1 to brave the rain
前所未有
qián suǒ wèi yǒu
  1. 1 unprecedented
大雨
dà yǔ
  1. 1 heavy rain
  2. 2 CL:場|场[cháng]
小雨
xiǎo yǔ
  1. 1 light rain
  2. 2 drizzle
从未
cóng wèi
  1. 1 never
意犹未尽
yì yóu wèi jìn
  1. 1 to wish to continue sth
  2. 2 to have not fully expressed oneself
春雨
chūn yǔ
  1. 1 spring rain
  2. 2 gift from above
暴雨
bào yǔ
  1. 1 torrential rain
  2. 2 rainstorm
  3. 3 CL:場|场[cháng],陣|阵[zhèn]
暴风雨
bào fēng yǔ
  1. 1 rainstorm
  2. 2 storm
  3. 3 tempest
未婚
wèi hūn
  1. 1 unmarried
未必
wèi bì
  1. 1 not necessarily
  2. 2 maybe not
未果
wèi guǒ
  1. 1 to fail to eventuate
  2. 2 (verb suffix) to be unsuccessful in ...ing
未知
wèi zhī
  1. 1 unknown
毛毛雨
máo mao yǔ
  1. 1 drizzle
  2. 2 light rain
  3. 3 (fig.) mere trifle
流星雨
liú xīng yǔ
  1. 1 meteor shower
淋雨
lín yǔ
  1. 1 to get wet in the rain

Idioms (20)

一波未平，一波又起
yī bō wèi píng , yī bō yòu qǐ
  1. 1 before the first wave subsides, a new wave rises (idiom); a new problem arises before the old is solved
  2. 2 many twists and turns to a story
  3. 3 one thing after another
一雨成秋
yī yǔ chéng qiū
  1. 1 a sudden shower towards the end of summer brings an abrupt arrival of autumn (idiom)
乳臭未干
rǔ xiù wèi gān
  1. 1 smell of mother's milk not yet dried (idiom); immature and inexperienced
  2. 2 still wet behind the ears
干打雷，不下雨
gān dǎ léi , bù xià yǔ
  1. 1 all thunder but no rain (idiom)
  2. 2 a lot of noise but no action
兵马未动，粮草先行
bīng mǎ wèi dòng , liáng cǎo xiān xíng
  1. 1 before the troops move, fodder and provisions go first (idiom); logistics comes before military maneuvers
  2. 2 an army marches on its stomach
前缘未了
qián yuán wèi liǎo
  1. 1 one's predestined fate is yet to be fulfilled (idiom)
呼风唤雨
hū fēng huàn yǔ
  1. 1 to call the wind and summon the rain (idiom); to exercise magical powers
  2. 2 fig. to stir up troubles
唤雨呼风
huàn yǔ hū fēng
  1. 1 to call the wind and summon the rain (idiom)
  2. 2 to exercise magical powers
  3. 3 fig. to stir up troubles
  4. 4 also 呼風喚雨|呼风唤雨[hū fēng huàn yǔ]
天要落雨，娘要嫁人
tiān yào luò yǔ , niáng yào jià rén
  1. 1 the rain will fall, the womenfolk will marry (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. the natural order of things
  3. 3 something you can't go against
天雨路滑
tiān yù lù huá
  1. 1 roads are slippery due to rain (idiom)
天雨顺延
tiān yǔ shùn yán
  1. 1 weather permitting (idiom)
始料未及
shǐ liào wèi jí
  1. 1 not expected at the outset (idiom)
  2. 2 unforeseen
  3. 3 to be surprised by the turn of events
宝刀未老
bǎo dāo wèi lǎo
  1. 1 treasure knife does not age (idiom); old but still vigorous
屋漏偏逢连夜雨
wū lòu piān féng lián yè yǔ
  1. 1 when it rains, it pours (idiom)
屋漏更遭连夜雨
wū lòu gèng zāo lián yè yǔ
  1. 1 when it rains, it pours (idiom)
巴山夜雨
Bā shān yè yǔ
  1. 1 rain on Mt Ba (idiom); lonely in a strange land
  2. 2 Evening Rain, 1980 movie about the Cultural Revolution
方滋未艾
fāng zī wèi ài
  1. 1 flourishing and still in the ascendant (idiom); rapidly expanding
  2. 2 still growing strong
  3. 3 on the up
方兴未已
fāng xīng wèi yǐ
  1. 1 flourishing and still in the ascendant (idiom); rapidly expanding
  2. 2 still growing strong
  3. 3 on the up
方兴未艾
fāng xīng wèi ài
  1. 1 flourishing and still in the ascendant (idiom); rapidly expanding
  2. 2 still growing strong
  3. 3 on the up
日晒雨淋
rì shài yǔ lín
  1. 1 scorched and drenched by sun and rain (idiom); suffer from exposure to the elements
  2. 2 weather-beaten

Sample Sentences

哎哎哎，你别胡说，血口喷人啊。拿刀的又不是我，我只不过是做了最坏的打算，“未雨绸缪”而已啊。
āi āi āi ，nǐ bié húshuō ，xiěkǒu pēn rén ā 。ná dāo de yòu bú shì wǒ ，wǒ zhǐ búguò shì zuò le zuì huài de dǎsuàn ，“wèiyǔchóumóu ”éryǐ ā 。
Son: Ah, what nonsense! Don't spit your poison at me. I wasn't the one holding the knife. I just planned for the worst case scenario, just planning ahead, that's all.
Go to Lesson 
你说的是没错，但谁知道会不会用到呢？未雨绸缪才是正确的态度。
nǐ shuō de shì méicuò ，dàn shéizhīdào huì bùhuì yòngdào ne ？wèiyǔchóumóu cáishì zhèngquè de tàidu 。
You're right, but who knows if it will come in useful? Preparing for a rainy day is the right attitude.
Go to Lesson