近水楼台

近水樓臺

jìnshuǐlóutái

idiom #53,062

Meanings

1 a waterside pavilion gets the moon first
2 to enjoy an advantage from proximity

Characters

multi-storey building

terrace; platform

Examples

他是经理的助理，可谓近水楼台。

Tā shì jīnglǐ de zhùlǐ, kěwèi jìnshuǐ lóutái.

He's the manager's assistant — you could say he has the inside track.

住在学校旁边，近水楼台，孩子上学方便。

Zhù zài xuéxiào pángbiān, jìnshuǐ lóutái, háizi shàngxué fāngbiàn.

Living next to the school means the kids can easily attend, an advantage of proximity.

Tips

history

From 宋·俞文豹《清夜录》: an unrecognized officer named Su Lin presented a poem to Fan Zhongyan — '近水楼台先得月，向阳花木易逢春' (a waterside pavilion catches the moon first; plants facing the sun greet spring first). Often truncated; the full form 近水楼台先得月 is also common.

Stroke Order

近 jìn

水 shuǐ

楼 lóu

台 tái