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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

HSK 4
他工资不高，每月都是寅吃卯粮。
Tā gōngzī bù gāo, měi yuè dōu shì yínchī-mǎoliáng.
His salary isn't high. Every month he eats into next month's money.
HSK 4
寅吃卯粮的日子让他压力很大。
Yínchī-mǎoliáng de rìzi ràng tā yālì hěn dà.
Living paycheck-to-paycheck and then some puts a lot of pressure on him.
HSK 7-9
国家财政不能长期寅吃卯粮。
Guójiā cáizhèng bù néng chángqī yínchī-mǎoliáng.
National finances can't keep spending future income forever.

Tips

culture
寅 and 卯 are consecutive years in the 12-year Earthly Branches cycle (寅 to 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