问渠哪得清如许

問渠哪得清如許

wènqúnǎdéqīngrúxǔ

phrase

Meanings

1 ask the canal how it can be so clear — a rhetorical question leading to the answer 'because fresh water keeps flowing in'
2 literally: ask the channel, how can it get so clear?

Characters

channel / canal (also 'it' classical)

such / so (classical)

Examples

问渠哪得清如许，为有源头活水来 — 学习也是一样的道理。

Wèn qú nǎ dé qīng rú xǔ, wèi yǒu yuántóu huóshuǐ lái — xuéxí yě shì yíyàng de dàolǐ.

'Ask the canal how it can be so clear? — because fresh water keeps flowing from the source.' Learning works the same way.

这家公司总有新产品，真是问渠哪得清如许。

Zhè jiā gōngsī zǒng yǒu xīn chǎnpǐn, zhēn shì wèn qú nǎ dé qīng rú xǔ.

This company always has new products — truly, 'ask the canal how it stays so clear'.

Tips

history

From Zhu Xi's (朱熹) Southern Song poem 《观书有感》 (On Reading Books). Couplet: 问渠哪得清如许？为有源头活水来 — 'Ask the canal how it can be so clear? — because fresh water keeps flowing in from the source.' Written after a morning of reading: the clear pool is a metaphor for a clear mind, constantly refreshed by new learning. 渠 here is a classical third-person pronoun as well as 'channel' — poets exploited the pun.

usage

Paired couplet — the second half 为有源头活水来 completes it. Beloved in educational speeches: the standard metaphor for continuous learning / renewal. 哪 here is nǎ (how, why) in the classical rhetorical-question sense.

Stroke Order

问 wèn

渠 qú

哪 nǎ

得 dé

清 qīng

如 rú

许 xǔ