海内存知己

海內存知己

hǎinèi cún zhījǐ

quotation

Meanings

1 within the four seas, a true friend endures
2 a bosom friend afar brings a distant land near
3 famous line by Tang poet Wang Bo on friendship across distance

Characters

Examples

HSK 3

海内存知己，你我在网上也能常常交流。

Hǎinèi cún zhījǐ, nǐ wǒ zài wǎngshàng yě néng chángcháng jiāoliú.

'A true friend in the world', even online, you and I stay in touch.

HSK 7-9

虽然我们分隔两地，但海内存知己，天涯若比邻。

Suīrán wǒmen fēngé liǎngdì, dàn hǎinèi cún zhījǐ, tiānyá ruò bǐlín.

Though we are far apart, a true friend within the seas makes the ends of the earth feel like neighbors.

Tips

history

From Tang poet Wang Bo's 《送杜少府之任蜀州》: 海内存知己，天涯若比邻 ('within the seas a true friend endures; the ends of the earth feel like next door'). Wang Bo used the line to console a friend setting off on a distant posting, setting the bold, open-hearted tone of Tang farewell poetry.

usage

Almost always appears together with the following line 天涯若比邻, used to express longing for a faraway friend.

Stroke Order

海 hǎi

内 nèi

存 cún

知 zhī

己 jǐ