How to say “Hide Your Strength, Bide Your Time” in Chinese?

Updated on December 29, 2022

Deng Xiao Ping, China’s paramount leader in the 1980s, once famously said “hide your strength, bide your time.”

How to say “Hide Your Strength, Bide Your Time” in Chinese?
How to say “Hide Your Strength, Bide Your Time” in Chinese?
  • 邓小平 (Dènɡ xiǎo pínɡ): Deng Xiao Ping (1904-1997), China’s paramount leader (in post-Mao era)
Chinese Idioms (Part 1)
Chinese Idioms (Part 1).

If you are a China hawk, I am sure you have come across this quote.

All books for learning Mandarin Chinese

I have seen this quote so many times in both foreign and Chinese media, so I thought of doing a lesson for you to learn this well-known Chinese phrase.

What does the quote means? How to translate it to English? How to say it in Chinese?

Well, “hide your strength, bide your time” is a Chinese idiom.

Idiom source

The idiom originates from “Old Book of the Tang Dynasty – Records of Xuanzong.”

  • 《旧唐书·宣宗记》“Jiù táng shū·xuānzōng jì” – Book of Tang; Old Book of the Tang Dynasty – Records of Xuanzong

In Chinese, the idiom is called Tao Guang Yang Hui.

  • 韬光养晦 (tāo guāng yǎng huì): hide one’s capacities and bide one’s time

Characters/words

  • 韬 (tāo): Conceal; cover up
  • 光 (guāng): Light; ray; splendor; glorify
  • 养 (yǎnɡ): Support; provide for; raise; keep
  • 晦 (huì): The last day of a lunar month; night
  • 养晦 (yǎnɡ huì): Live in retirement and wait for the opportunity to stage a comeback
Introduction to Chinese History (Part 1).
Introduction to Chinese History (Part 1).

How to translate “Tao Guang Yang Hui” into English?

The idiom broadly translates to “Keep a low profile (for a while), follow the time, and wait for the right time to show your strength and stage a comeback”.

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