一日之计在于晨

一日之計在於晨

yīrìzhījìzàiyúchén

idiom

Meanings

1 the plan for the day lies in the morning
2 a day's work begins at dawn
3 early morning is the golden time of the day

Characters

lies at / is in

at / in (classical)

Examples

一日之计在于晨，我每天早上都会读半小时英语。

Yī rì zhī jì zài yú chén, wǒ měitiān zǎoshang dōu huì dú bàn xiǎoshí Yīngyǔ.

The day's plan lies in the morning — every morning I read English for half an hour.

一日之计在于晨，一年之计在于春。

Yī rì zhī jì zài yú chén, yī nián zhī jì zài yú chūn.

The day's plan lies in the morning, the year's plan lies in the spring.

Tips

history

A proverb recorded in Xiao Yi's 《纂要》 (Liang dynasty): 一年之计在于春，一日之计在于晨。 Later enshrined in the Ming-dynasty primer 《增广贤文》, which made it a schoolroom staple. The two halves are a fixed pair.

usage

Usually quoted together with 一年之计在于春 for full effect. Modern schools and fitness influencers both love it.

Stroke Order

一 yī

日 rì

之 zhī

计 jì

在 zài

于 yú

晨 chén