人穷志不穷

人窮志不窮

rénqióngzhìbùqióng

idiom

Meanings

1 poor in pocket but not in spirit
2 though destitute, still of noble aspiration
3 (lit.) the person is poor, the will is not poor

Characters

poor / destitute

aspiration / will

Examples

他从小家境贫寒，但人穷志不穷，考上了最好的大学。

Tā cóngxiǎo jiājìng pínhán, dàn rénqióngzhìbùqióng, kǎoshàng le zuìhǎo de dàxué.

He grew up poor but his ambition was never poor — he made it into the top university.

做人应当人穷志不穷，不靠乞求过日子。

Zuòrén yīngdāng rénqióngzhìbùqióng, bù kào qǐqiú guòrìzi.

One should be poor in pocket but not in spirit — don't live by begging.

Tips

history

A folk saying with Ming-Qing currency, often paired with the more formal 君子固穷 ('the gentleman stands firm in poverty') from 《论语·卫灵公》. Appears in the 俗语 (proverb) tradition as 『人穷志不穷，人贱志不贱』and is quoted in novels like 《儒林外史》. CC-CEDICT lists it as an idiom: 'poor but with great ambitions.'

usage

Modern usage is almost exclusively positive — said of people who refuse to let material hardship degrade their character or lower their goals.

Stroke Order

人 rén

穷 qióng

志 zhì

不 bù