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宛在水中央

wǎnzàishuǐzhōngyāng
phrase

Meanings

  1. 1 as if she were in the middle of the water
  2. 2 (fig.) the beloved seems close yet unreachable, shimmering just out of grasp
  3. 3 (lit.) seemingly is at water's center

Examples

远远望去，那人影朦胧，宛在水中央。
Yuǎn yuǎn wàng qù, nà rén yǐng ménglóng, wǎn zài shuǐ zhōngyāng.
Gazing from afar, the figure was hazy, 'as if in the middle of the water.'
他追求理想多年，却总觉得理想宛在水中央，可望而不可即。
Tā zhuīqiú lǐxiǎng duō nián, què zǒng juéde lǐxiǎng wǎn zài shuǐ zhōngyāng, kě wàng ér bù kě jí.
After years of chasing his ideal, he still feels it is 'as if in the middle of the water' — visible but unreachable.

Tips

history
From 《诗经·秦风·蒹葭》(Shijing, 'Odes of Qin: The Reeds,' pre-Confucian, c. 600 BCE): 蒹葭苍苍，白露为霜。所谓伊人，在水一方。溯洄从之，道阻且长。溯游从之，宛在水中央 (The reeds are lush, the white dew turns to frost. The one I seek is on the far side of the water. I go upstream — the road is hard and long. I go downstream — she seems to be in the middle of the water). One of the most famous poems in the Chinese canon; the archetypal image of unattainable longing.
usage
Reading: 宛 = wǎn ('as if / seemingly'), a classical adverb. The line is almost always quoted after 溯游从之. The 1988 pop song 《在水一方》 by Deng Lijun (Teresa Teng) is a modern retelling of the same poem.

Stroke Order

宛 wǎn
在 zài
水 shuǐ
中 zhōng
央 yāng