一帆风顺
- Literal
- one sail, a following wind
- Figurative
- Going smoothly from start to finish, without a single setback — also a set wish for someone starting out.
Where does 一帆风顺 come from?
It does not come from a particular tale: the image is from river and coastal sailing, where a single sail and a wind from astern were enough to carry a boat along with no effort and no maneuvering. From there it came to describe any undertaking that runs smoothly start to finish. Besides that descriptive use, it is a fixed good-luck formula, said when seeing off someone starting a trip, a job, or a new chapter.
How is 一帆风顺 used? Two examples
- 祝你在新的公司一帆风顺，早日适应。
Wishing you smooth sailing at the new company, and hoping you settle in soon.
- 创业哪有一帆风顺的，第一年我们差点关门。
Who ever starts a business and has smooth sailing all the way? Our first year we nearly shut down.
In Wanyu, all 400 chengyu have audio on every sentence, and you can save them to your decks and review them with spaced repetition. Free.
