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未雨绸缪

wèi yǔ chóu móudictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
lit. before it rains, bind around with silk (idiom, from Book of Songs 詩經|诗经) / fig. to plan ahead / to prepare for a rainy day
Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-8693c97f310920f6. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

未雨綢繆 未雨绸缪 [wei4 yu3 chou2 mou2] /lit. before it rains, bind around with silk (idiom, from Book of Songs 詩經|诗经); fig. to plan ahead/to prepare for a rainy day/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

Other forms in these source records: 未雨綢繆

  • 未
    wèi

    not yet / did not / have not / not / 8th earthly branch: 1-3 p.m., 6th solar month (7th July-6th August), year of the Sheep / ancient Chinese compass point: 210°

  • 雨
    yù

    (literary) to rain / (of rain, snow etc) to fall / to precipitate / to wet

  • 绸
    chóu

    (light) silk / CL:匹[pǐ]

  • 缪
    miù

    See the full entry for source details.

    móu

    used in 綢繆|绸缪[chóu móu]

    mù

    See the full entry for source details.

    Miào

    surname Miao

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.