饮水思源
yǐn shuǐ sī yuán
Pinyin

Definition

饮水思源
 - 
yǐn shuǐ sī yuán
  1. lit. when you drink water, think of its source (idiom); gratitude for blessings and their well-spring
  2. Don't forget where your happiness come from.
  3. Be grateful for all your blessings!

Character Decomposition

Related Words (20)

hǎo yì si
  1. 1 to have the nerve
  2. 2 what a cheek!
  3. 3 to feel no shame
  4. 4 to overcome the shame
  5. 5 (is it) proper? (rhetorical question)
sī niàn
  1. 1 to think of
  2. 2 to long for
  3. 3 to miss
sī xiǎng
  1. 1 thought
  2. 2 thinking
  3. 3 idea
  4. 4 ideology
  5. 5 CL:個|个[gè]
sī wéi
  1. 1 (line of) thought
  2. 2 thinking
sī kǎo
  1. 1 to reflect on
  2. 2 to ponder over
yì si
  1. 1 idea
  2. 2 opinion
  3. 3 meaning
  4. 4 wish
  5. 5 desire
  6. 6 interest
  7. 7 fun
  8. 8 token of appreciation, affection etc
  9. 9 CL:個|个[gè]
  10. 10 to give as a small token
  11. 11 to do sth as a gesture of goodwill etc
yǒu yì si
  1. 1 interesting
  2. 2 meaningful
  3. 3 enjoyable
  4. 4 fun
Shuǐ
  1. 1 surname Shui
shuǐ píng
  1. 1 level (of achievement etc)
  2. 2 standard
  3. 3 horizontal
shuǐ guǒ
  1. 1 fruit
  2. 2 CL:個|个[gè]
Shuǐ píng zuò
  1. 1 Aquarius (constellation and sign of the zodiac)
cái yuán
  1. 1 financial resources
  2. 2 source of revenue
Zī yuán
  1. 1 Ziyuan county in Guilin 桂林[Guì lín], Guangxi
yī tóu wù shuǐ
  1. 1 to be confused
  2. 2 to be baffled
sān sī ér hòu xíng
  1. 1 think again and again before acting (idiom); consider carefully in advance
xià shuǐ
  1. 1 downstream
  2. 2 to go into the water
  3. 3 to put into water
  4. 4 to launch (a ship)
  5. 5 fig. to fall into bad ways
  6. 6 to lead astray
  7. 7 to go to pot
xià shuǐ dào
  1. 1 sewer
bù kě sī yì
  1. 1 inconceivable (idiom); unimaginable
  2. 2 unfathomable
lái yuán
  1. 1 source (of information etc)
  2. 2 origin
lái yuán yú
  1. 1 to originate in

Idioms (20)

一清如水
yī qīng rú shuǐ
  1. 1 lit. as clear as water (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. (of officials etc) honest and incorruptible
一碗水端平
yī wǎn shuǐ duān píng
  1. 1 lit. to hold a bowl of water level (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. to be impartial
一门心思
yī mén xīn si
  1. 1 to set one's heart on sth (idiom)
一点水一个泡
yī diǎn shuǐ yī gè pào
  1. 1 honest and trustworthy (idiom)
三个和尚没水喝
sān gè hé shang méi shuǐ hē
  1. 1 lit. three monks have no water to drink (idiom)
  2. 2 fig. everybody's business is nobody's business
  3. 3 (If there is one monk, he will fetch water for himself. If there are two, they will fetch water together. But if there are three or more, none will take it upon himself to fetch water.)
三思而后行
sān sī ér hòu xíng
  1. 1 think again and again before acting (idiom); consider carefully in advance
三思而行
sān sī ér xíng
  1. 1 think three times then go (idiom); don't act before you've thought it through carefully
不假思索
bù jiǎ sī suǒ
  1. 1 to act without taking time to think (idiom); to react instantly
  2. 2 to fire from the hip
不可思议
bù kě sī yì
  1. 1 inconceivable (idiom); unimaginable
  2. 2 unfathomable
不显山不露水
bù xiǎn shān bù lù shuǐ
  1. 1 lit. to not show the mountain and to not reveal the water (idiom); fig. to hide the key facts
人不可貌相,海水不可斗量
rén bù kě mào xiàng , hǎi shuǐ bù kě dǒu liáng
  1. 1 you can't judge a person by appearance, just as you can't measure the sea with a pint pot (idiom)
人往高处走,水往低处流
rén wǎng gāo chù zǒu , shuǐ wǎng dī chù liú
  1. 1 man seeks his way up just as water seeks its way down (idiom)
  2. 2 one should constantly strive to make progress
似水年华
sì shuǐ nián huá
  1. 1 fleeting years (idiom)
兵来将挡,水来土掩
bīng lái jiàng dǎng , shuǐ lái tǔ yǎn
  1. 1 counter soldiers with arms, water with an earth weir (idiom); different situations call for different action
  2. 2 to adopt measures appropriate to the actual situation
兵来将敌,水来土堰
bīng lái jiàng dí , shuǐ lái tǔ yàn
  1. 1 counter soldiers with arms, water with an earth weir (idiom); different situations call for different action
  2. 2 to adopt measures appropriate to the actual situation
冥思苦想
míng sī kǔ xiǎng
  1. 1 to consider from all angles (idiom); to think hard
  2. 2 to rack one's brains
冥思苦索
míng sī kǔ suǒ
  1. 1 to mull over (idiom)
  2. 2 to think long and hard
出水芙蓉
chū shuǐ fú róng
  1. 1 as a lotus flower breaking the surface (idiom); surpassingly beautiful (of young lady's face or old gentleman's calligraphy)
刻骨相思
kè gǔ xiāng sī
  1. 1 deep-seated lovesickness (idiom)
十指不沾阳春水
shí zhǐ bù zhān yáng chūn shuǐ
  1. 1 to have no need to fend for oneself (idiom)
  2. 2 to lead a pampered life

Sample Sentences

其实奉养父母体现的是一种懂得饮水思源、知恩图报的基本德行,这是为什么“不孝”在中国社会被视为一种无德而遭受批判,但孝行必须发自内心,否则意义不大。除此之外,孝道还有更深一层的意义,就是不使父母蒙羞。
qíshí fèngyǎng fùmǔ tǐxiàn de shì yīzhǒng dǒngde yǐnshuǐsīyuán 、zhīēntúbal4 de jīběn déxing ,zhè shì wèishénme “bù xiào ”zài Zhōngguó shèhuì bèi shì wèi yīzhǒng wú dé ér zāoshòu pīpàn ,dàn xiàoxíng bìxū fāzì nèixīn ,fǒuzé yìyì bùdà 。chú cǐ zhīwài ,xiàodào háiyǒu gèng shēn yī céng de yìyì ,jiùshì bù shǐ fùmǔ méngxiū 。
Actually looking after your parents embodies the virtues of knowing which side your bread is buttered on and to repaying kindnesses done to you. This is why being "unfilial" is a criticism suffered by those that are seen to be without virtue, but filial behavior should come from the heart, otherwise it doesn't mean much. Apart from this, filial piety has a deeper level of significance, which is to not let your parents shame.