人生七十古来稀

人生七十古來稀

rénshēngqīshígǔláixī

idiom

Meanings

1 reaching seventy has always been rare
2 it's rare since ancient times to live to seventy

Characters

since (古来 = since ancient times)

Examples

酒债寻常行处有，人生七十古来稀。

Jiǔ zhài xúncháng xíng chù yǒu, rénshēng qīshí gǔ lái xī.

Wine debts are everywhere I go — but reaching seventy has always been rare.

爷爷今年七十大寿，真是人生七十古来稀。

Yéye jīnnián qīshí dàshòu, zhēn shì rénshēng qīshí gǔ lái xī.

Grandpa is celebrating his seventieth birthday this year — truly, 'to reach seventy has always been rare.'

Tips

history

From Du Fu's 《曲江二首·其二》 (Tang dynasty): 酒债寻常行处有，人生七十古来稀。 From this line came the honorific 古稀 (gǔxī) — a euphemism for seventy years old, still used on birthday cards today. Xinhua 《成语词典》 confirms the exact quotation.

culture

古稀之年 (gǔxī zhī nián) = 'the age of seventy', now almost always abbreviated as 古稀. For a seventieth birthday, a 古稀寿宴 is the traditional banquet.

Stroke Order

人 rén

生 shēng

七 qī

十 shí

古 gǔ

来 lái

稀 xī