未雨绸缪
wèi yǔ chóu móu
to prepare before the need arises
Character by character
未wèi
not yet
not yet
雨yǔ
rain
rain
绸chóu
bind
bind
缪móu
tight
tight
Example
养老的问题要未雨绸缪，不能等老了再想办法。
Plan for old age in advance; do not wait until you are old to work something out.
Tone: positive (praise).
Usage and origin
Mend the house before the rain comes.
Learn this in Lesson 27 · HSK 5–6: 人口与老龄化 (Population and ageing)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. This lesson is free.
Open the lesson →