塞翁失马sài wēng shī mǎa blessing in disguise

1. 1.

   a blessing in disguiseidiom

Figurative meaning

A blessing in disguise.

Literal meaning

The old man lost his horse.

• 塞(bound form) strategic stronghold
• 翁elderly man
• 失to lose
• 马horse

The story

Near the frontier lived a man skilled in divination. For no reason his horse ran away into the lands of the Hu, and everyone came to console him.

塞翁失马 can comfort someone after a setback by suggesting it may turn out well.

1. HSK 4

   我晚到了，火车走了，却遇到了老朋友，这是塞翁失马。

   Wǒ wǎn dào le, huǒchē zǒu le, què yùdàole lǎo péngyou, zhè shì sài wēng shī mǎ.

   I arrived late and the train had left, but I ran into an old friend; it was a blessing in disguise.

2. HSK 3

   我丢了那个工作，现在的工作更好，这是塞翁失马。

   Wǒ diūle nàge gōngzuò, xiànzài de gōngzuò gèng hǎo, zhè shì sài wēng shī mǎ.

   I lost that job, and my current job is better; it was a blessing in disguise.

1. 
   Speaker A:

   下雨了，我们不能去公园了。

   Xià yǔ le, wǒmen bù néng qù gōngyuán le.

   It's raining; we can't go to the park.

2. 
   Speaker B:

   那我们在家看电影吧。

   Nà wǒmen zài jiā kàn diànyǐng ba.

   Then let's watch a movie at home.

3. 
   Speaker A:

   这个电影太好看了！

   Zhège diànyǐng tài hǎokàn le!

   This movie is great!

4. 
   Speaker B:

   你看，塞翁失马。

   Nǐ kàn, sài wēng shī mǎ.

   See, a blessing in disguise.

1. 1.What does 塞翁失马 mean?

   AA blessing in disguiseBA horse raceCGetting lost
2. 2.Which sentence uses 塞翁失马 correctly?

   A没赶上火车，却遇到了老朋友，这是塞翁失马。B这匹马很塞翁失马。C他塞翁失马地走路。
3. 3.Which word fits best? 丢了工作，找到了更好的，是____。 (Losing a job and finding a better one is a blessing in disguise.)

   A塞翁失马B对牛弹琴C杯弓蛇影

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Related idioms

• 指鹿为马zhǐ lù wéi mǎdeliberate misrepresentationNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus
• 老马识途lǎo mǎ shí túan old hand knows the ropesNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus
• 走马观花zǒu mǎ guān huāsuperficial understanding from cursory observationNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus
• 马到成功mǎ dào chéng gōngto win instant successNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus
• 马马虎虎mǎ ma hū hūcarelessNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus
• 一年一度yī nián yī dù(idiom) annual; once a yearNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus

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