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寅吃卯粮

寅吃卯糧
yínchī-mǎoliáng
idiom

Meanings

  1. 1 to eat next year's grain this year
  2. 2 to live beyond one's means
  3. 3 to spend future income in advance

Examples

他工资不高，每月都是寅吃卯粮。
Tā gōngzī bù gāo, měiyuè dōu shì yínchīmǎoliáng.
His salary isn't high — every month he eats into next month's money.
国家财政不能长期寅吃卯粮。
Guójiā cáizhèng bùnéng chángqī yínchīmǎoliáng.
National finances can't keep spending future income forever.
寅吃卯粮的日子让他压力很大。
Yínchīmǎoliáng de rìzi ràng tā yālì hěn dà.
Living paycheck-to-paycheck and then some puts a lot of pressure on him.

Tips

culture
寅 and 卯 are consecutive years in the 12-year Earthly Branches cycle (寅 → 卯). Eating 卯 year's grain while still in 寅 means consuming next year's supply this year — a vivid image of living beyond one's means.
history
Attested in Li Baojia's late-Qing novel 《官场现形记》 describing cash-strapped officials. A modern near-equivalent is 'living paycheck to paycheck.'

Stroke Order

寅 yín
吃 chī
卯 mǎo
粮 liáng