萍水相逢

píngshuǐ-xiāngféng

idiom HSK 7-9 #40,906

Meanings

HSK 4

我们萍水相逢，却成了好朋友。

Wǒmen píngshuǐ-xiāngféng, què chéng le hǎo péngyǒu.

We met by chance, yet became good friends.

HSK 4

虽然萍水相逢，他还是热心帮助了我。

Suīrán píngshuǐ-xiāngféng, tā háishì rèxīn bāngzhù le wǒ.

Although we were total strangers, he enthusiastically helped me.

memory

Picture duckweed (萍) floating on water (水) - two pieces drift together briefly and then apart. That's the image: strangers meeting by chance.

history

From the Tang dynasty poet Wang Bo's famous preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng (《滕王阁序》): 萍水相逢，尽是他乡之客.

萍 píng

水 shuǐ

相 xiāng

逢 féng