maang6 mou5 saam1 cin1孟母三遷孟母三迁
Definition
A mother who moves repeatedly to find the best educational and social environment for her children.
How it's used
This idiom describes the lengths parents go to in order to provide an ideal environment for their children's development. It is often used in a slightly hyperbolic or humorous way to describe someone who moves house frequently to get into a better school district. While it carries a sense of parental sacrifice, it can also imply that the person is being overly anxious or obsessive about their child's surroundings.
Examples
Related words
Common phrases
Common mistake
Learners often mistake this for a literal description of moving house, but it specifically carries the connotation of moving for the sake of education or moral upbringing. Avoid using it to describe moving for convenience or financial reasons.
Grammar color guide
Grammar guides
- LocationHow to say where something is using 喺 (hai2), place words like 度, and the common coverbs that work like English prepositions.
- Serial verbsStringing two or more verbs together without any joining word, like go to the shop buy things. Extremely common in Cantonese.
- 將 disposalHow to move the object in front of the verb with 將, to focus on what happens to it. Common in instructions and writing.
