📖 Meaning
Literally meaning 'to see seedlings sprout before one's eyes,' this idiom describes a situation where results or profits are realized immediately. It conveys the idea of quick, visible returns on an action or investment. The metaphor likens prompt success to watching crops grow right in front of you.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom draws on agricultural imagery familiar throughout Chinese history, where the sight of sprouting seedlings signaled a promising harvest. Though it lacks a single identifiable literary origin, it reflects the deep agrarian roots of Chinese metaphorical language. The phrase emphasizes immediacy—results that appear as quickly as one can watch a seedling emerge from the soil.
💡 Example Usage
这项投资见世生苗，回报来得很快。
This investment yielded immediate results, with returns coming very quickly.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 见世生苗
- Pinyin: jiàn shì shēng miáo
- Literal Translation: see, world, grow, seedling
- Category: Success
- Characters: 4