大树底下好乘凉

大樹底下好乘涼

dàshù dǐxia hǎo chéngliáng

proverb

Meanings

1 it's cool in the shade of a big tree
2 it pays to have a powerful patron

Characters

easy to; good for

to take advantage of

Examples

HSK 5

很多小企业想跟大品牌合作，图的就是大树底下好乘凉。

Hěnduō xiǎo qǐyè xiǎng gēn dà pǐnpái hézuò, tú de jiùshì dàshù dǐxia hǎo chéngliáng.

Many small firms want to work with big brands; what they are after is the shelter of a powerful partner.

HSK 6

他进了大公司，大树底下好乘凉嘛。

Tā jìn le dà gōngsī, dàshù dǐxia hǎo chéngliáng ma.

He got a job at a big company: there is good shade under a big tree.

Tips

usage

乘 means "to make use of" here, not "to ride". The saying can be plain advice or a dig at someone living off connections. Compare 前人栽树，后人乘凉 "earlier generations plant the trees, later ones enjoy the shade", about benefiting from others' work.

Stroke Order

大 dà

树 shù

底 dǐ

下 xià

好 hǎo

乘 chéng

凉 liáng