竹外桃花三两枝

竹外桃花三兩枝
zhú wài táo huā sān liǎng zhī
quotation

Meanings

  1. 1 beyond the bamboo, two or three branches of peach blossom
  2. 2 a small, delicate early-spring scene with peach flowers peeking past bamboo

Examples

Yuànzi lǐ zhènghǎo zhúwàitáohuāsānliǎngzhī, xiàng fú Sòng huà.
In the courtyard, two or three peach branches poked out past the bamboo — like a Song dynasty painting.
Sānyuè chū jiāoyóu, zuì ài kàn zhúwàitáohuāsānliǎngzhī de jǐng.
On an early March outing, I love that 'two or three peach branches beyond the bamboo' scene most.

Tips

history
From 苏轼 Su Shi 《》: 桃花江水先知 — 'beyond the bamboo, two or three peach branches; the spring river warms, the duck is the first to know.' Written to inscribe a painting by the monk Hui Chong.
usage
Usually quoted with the much-more-famous next line 江水先知. here = 'two or three, a few' (approximate small number), not specifically 'three-two.'

Stroke Order

zhú
wài
táo
huā
sān
liǎng
zhī