📖 Meaning
A good swimmer is often the one who drowns. This idiom warns that overconfidence in one's own skill or expertise can lead to carelessness and disaster. It teaches that proficiency should not breed arrogance, as the very thing one excels at can become the source of one's downfall.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom comes from the 'Yuan Dao Xun' (原道训) chapter of the Huainanzi, a philosophical text compiled during the Western Han Dynasty under the patronage of Liu An, the Prince of Huainan. The original passage states: 'The good swimmer drowns, the good rider falls — each, through that which they love, brings disaster upon themselves.' The text uses this observation to illustrate a Daoist principle: excessive attachment to or reliance on one's abilities can backfire. The idiom has since become a classic caution against hubris and complacency.
💡 Example Usage
他仗着水性好游到深水区，结果善游者溺，差点没上来。
Relying on his strong swimming skills, he swam out to the deep water — but as the saying goes, the good swimmer drowns, and he nearly didn't make it back.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 善游者溺
- Pinyin: shàn yóu zhě nì
- Literal Translation: good, swim, one who, drown
- Category: Wisdom
- Characters: 4