📖 Meaning
The water and sky merge into a single hue, appearing indistinguishable at the horizon. It describes a vast, boundless panorama where the lake or sea seamlessly blends into the heavens.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from the Tang Dynasty poet Wang Bo's celebrated 'Preface to the Prince of Teng's Pavilion' (《滕王阁序》), written in the 7th century. The famous couplet 'Falling clouds and solitary wild ducks fly together; autumn waters share one color with the vast sky' (落霞与孤鹜齐飞，秋水共长天一色) inspired the phrase. Wang Bo composed the piece at Tengwang Pavilion overlooking the Gan River in present-day Nanchang, capturing the breathtaking vista where water and sky unite at the horizon.
💡 Example Usage
站在湖边望去，只见水天一色，美不胜收。
Standing by the lake and gazing out, one sees only water and sky merging into one color — a scene of boundless beauty.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 水天一色
- Pinyin: shuǐ tiān yī sè
- Literal Translation: water, sky, one, color
- Category: Distance
- Characters: 4