近水楼台先得月

近水樓臺先得月

jìnshuǐ lóutái xiān dé yuè

idiom #71,002

Meanings

1 the pavilion nearest the water gets the moonlight first
2 those close to the source of favor benefit first / proximity has its privileges

Characters

building / tower

platform / terrace

to get / obtain

Examples

HSK 3

住在学校旁边的孩子近水楼台先得月，上学方便多了。

Zhù zài xuéxiào pángbiān de háizi jìnshuǐ lóutái xiān dé yuè, shàngxué fāngbiàn duō le.

Kids living next to the school have the advantage of proximity - getting to class is much easier.

HSK 7-9

他在总部工作，近水楼台先得月，消息总比我们灵通。

Tā zài zǒngbù gōngzuò, jìnshuǐ lóutái xiān dé yuè, xiāoxi zǒng bǐ wǒmen língtōng.

He works at headquarters, so as the pavilion nearest the water he always gets news before us.

Tips

history

From a poem by Song official 苏麟 to 范仲淹, recorded in Yu Wenbao's 《清夜录》: Fan promoted every local officer around him except Su Lin, so Su wrote: 近水楼台先得月，向阳花木易逢春 - 'The pavilion by the water gets the moon first; flowers and trees facing the sun meet spring more easily.' A polite, poetic hint for patronage. Fan took it and promoted him.

usage

Often used to describe people who benefit from proximity to power, information, or resources - sometimes neutral, sometimes mildly critical.

Stroke Order

近 jìn

水 shuǐ

楼 lóu

台 tái

先 xiān

得 de

月 yuè