当时只道是寻常

當時只道是尋常
dāngshízhǐdàoshìxúncháng
phrase

Meanings

  1. 1 at the time, I merely took it to be ordinary
  2. 2 (fig.) you only realize how precious something was after you've lost it
  3. 3 (lit.) that-time — only — took-it — to-be — ordinary

Examples

Huítóu xiǎngxiǎng hé fùmǔ zài yīqǐ de rìzi, dāngshí zhǐ dào shì xúncháng.
Looking back on those days with my parents — 'at the time I just took them to be ordinary.'
Shīqù zhīhòu cái míngbái, dāngshí zhǐ dào shì xúncháng.
Only after losing it did I understand — 'at the time I simply took it to be ordinary.'

Tips

history
Closing line of ·西独自》 (Nalan Xingde, Qing, late 17th c.), written mourning his deceased wife: 西独自萧萧沉思往事当时寻常 (Who thinks of me, alone and cold in the west wind? Whispering yellow leaves, the latticed window shut; I stand in the dying sun, lost in what was. Drunk on wine, I never startled her heavy spring sleep; betting over books, we'd spill the tea — how fragrant it was. At the time, I just took it to be ordinary). Nalan is the undisputed king of Qing lovesick ci.
usage
here is classical 'to say / reckon' (only took to be), not 'road / Dao.' One of the most quoted closing lines in all Chinese poetry — a favorite for essays on loss, nostalgia, and the cost of inattention.

Stroke Order

dāng
shí
zhǐ
dào
shì
xún
cháng