养儿防老

養兒防老

yǎng'érfánglǎo

idiom

Meanings

1 to raise children for old age (so they can support you)
2 to bring up sons to provide for one's later years
3 (traditional logic for having children)

Characters

to raise; to nurture

to guard against; to prevent

Examples

老一辈人相信养儿防老，但现在情况不同了。

Lǎo yí bèi rén xiāngxìn yǎng ér fáng lǎo, dàn xiànzài qíngkuàng bù tóng le.

The older generation believed in raising children for their old age, but things are different now.

在没有养老保险的年代，养儿防老是一种现实选择。

Zài méiyǒu yǎnglǎo bǎoxiǎn de niándài, yǎng ér fáng lǎo shì yì zhǒng xiànshí xuǎnzé.

In an era without pensions, raising children for one's old age was a practical choice.

他不愿要孩子，根本不信什么养儿防老。

Tā bú yuàn yào háizi, gēnběn bú xìn shénme yǎng ér fáng lǎo.

He doesn't want children — he simply doesn't buy the idea of having kids to support you in old age.

Tips

history

From Chen Yuanjing's 《事林广记》 (Southern Song almanac): '养儿防老，积谷防饥' — 'raise sons against old age, store grain against famine'. The full couplet is still quoted today.

culture

Tied to 孝 (xiào, filial piety) and to systems where the state provided no pension. Often invoked — sometimes ironically — in modern debates about declining birthrates and elderly care.

Stroke Order

养 yǎng

儿 ér

防 fáng

老 lǎo