📖 Meaning
Something of lowly value becomes extremely precious when it is needed at a critical moment. The idiom illustrates that worth is contextual — even the humblest object can be invaluable when circumstances make it essential.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom traces back to the Warring States period text Heguanzi (鹖冠子). The text observes that a jug of water, though ordinarily cheap and commonplace, becomes worth a thousand pieces of gold when one is desperately thirsty in a barren wilderness. Later scholars cited this metaphor to illustrate that value is situational rather than intrinsic. It cautions against judging things solely by their apparent worth and reminds us that even the lowliest thing has its moment of supreme importance.
💡 Example Usage
缺水之时，这一瓶清水可谓一壸千金。
When water is scarce, this single bottle of clear water is worth a fortune.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 一壸千金
- Pinyin: yī kuì qiān jīn
- Literal Translation: one, jug, thousand, gold
- Category: Philosophy
- Characters: 4