春江水暖鸭先知 chūn jiāng shuǐ nuǎn yā xiān zhī

fig. an expert in the field knows which way the wind blows

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency Unknown

Definitions

  1. 1. fig. an expert in the field knows which way the wind blows
  2. 2. lit. the duck is the first to know if the spring water is warm (idiom)

Characters

Character Meaning
spring (season); youthful; joyful
river; surname Jiang
water; liquid; beverage
warm; to warm; variant of nuǎn, warm
duck; (slang) male prostitute
first; in advance; early
to know; to be aware