先见之明

先見之明
xiānjiànzhīmíng
idiom #33,026

Meanings

  1. 1 foresight
  2. 2 the wisdom to see things coming
  3. 3 prescience

Examples

HSK 3
Zhège juédìng xūyào xiānjiànzhīmíng.
This decision requires foresight.
HSK 7-9
Tā zǎonián tóuzī fángchǎn, hěn yǒu xiānjiànzhīmíng.
Investing in property years ago showed real foresight.

Tips

history
From 《后汉书·杨彪传》: 愧无日磾先见之明,犹怀老牛舐犊之爱, Yang Biao lamenting he lacked the foresight of Jin Midi (金日磾), who had executed his own wayward son.
grammar
Nearly always paired with 有/没有: 有先见之明 ('to have foresight'), 缺乏先见之明 ('to lack foresight').

Stroke Order

先 xiān
见 jiàn
之 zhī
明 míng