春宵一刻值千金

Chūnxiāo yī kè zhí qiānjīn

quotation

Meanings

1 a moment of a spring night is worth a thousand in gold
2 (fig.) precious fleeting time - often applied to beauty, romance, or a wedding night
3 (lit.) spring night one-instant worth thousand gold

Characters

night (春宵 = spring night)

moment / quarter hour

gold (千金 = thousand in gold)

Examples

HSK 6

春宵一刻值千金，花有清香月有阴，最能道出春夜的美好。

Chūnxiāoyīkèzhíqiānjīn, huā yǒu qīngxiāng yuè yǒu yīn, zuì néng dàochū chūn yè de měihǎo.

'A moment of a spring night is worth a thousand in gold - flowers bear soft fragrance, the moon a quiet shade' - no line better captures spring evenings.

HSK 7-9

新婚夫妇总会被长辈笑说春宵一刻值千金。

Xīnhūn fūfù zǒnghuì bèi zhǎngbèi xiào shuō chūnxiāoyīkèzhíqiānjīn.

Elders always tease newlyweds with 'a moment of a spring night is worth a thousand in gold.'

Tips

history

From 苏轼《春宵》 (Su Shi, Northern Song), a short seven-character quatrain: 春宵一刻值千金，花有清香月有阴。歌管楼台声细细，秋千院落夜沉沉 (A moment of a spring night is worth a thousand gold; flowers hold soft fragrance, the moon a gentle shade. From terrace and pavilion, song and pipe ring delicate; in the swing-courtyard, night settles deep). Originally a meditation on spring's fleetingness, popular culture redirected it to wedding-night humor by the Ming-Qing period.

usage

A standard wedding couplet / banter line in modern life; the original poetic sense (precious spring night generally) is now minority usage. 一刻 = originally 1/96 of a day (~15 min); here simply 'a brief moment.'

Stroke Order

春 chūn

宵 xiāo

一 yī

刻 kè

值 zhí

千 qiān

金 jīn