📖 Meaning
To bend with the prevailing circumstances, conserve one's strength, and patiently wait for the right moment to act. It describes a strategic patience — not passive inaction, but deliberate preparation while the situation ripens. The idiom is often used in political or military contexts where premature action would be ruinous.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom first appears in Yang Xuanzhi's "Record of Buddhist Monasteries in Luoyang" (《洛阳伽蓝记》), a Northern Wei dynasty text from the 6th century, in the chapter on Yongning Temple. The passage criticizes the powerful general Erzhu Rong (尔朱荣), who had just eliminated his rivals and stood as the sole dominant force at court. The text remarks that he was merely "complying with the times and biding his time" — a thinly veiled accusation that he was waiting for the opportunity to usurp the throne. The annotator Fan Xiangyong later confirmed this reading.
💡 Example Usage
面对强敌压境，他选择遵养待时，暗中整军备战。
Faced with an overwhelming enemy force, he chose to comply outwardly and bide his time, secretly training his troops and preparing for battle.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 遵养待时
- Pinyin: zūn yǎng dài shí
- Literal Translation: comply, nurture, wait, timing
- Category: Wisdom
- Characters: 4