To Sun Something for One Day and Then Freeze It for Ten Days一曝十寒

张波

“一曝十寒”出自《孟子·告子上》：“虽有天下易生之物也，一日暴之，十日寒之，未有能生者也。”比喻没有恒心，努力少，荒废多。

Mencius lived during the Warring States Period. He was not only veryknowledgeable but also very 1）eloquent. He often used very vivid analogiesto persuade kings of that period to do good deeds.

Everyone said that the King of Qi was stupid， without his own ideas，and was easily influenced by his 2）wicked ministers. This greatly displeasedMencius， so he went to the King of Qi and said， “Don’t think I’m saying you’ renot intelligent. Everyone knows that plants all need sunlight to grow. If youexpose them to sunlight for a day， and then keep them in dark for ten days，even those plants which grow easily will not do well. In the same way， thetime that I am here with you is not very long. You may develop the will to dogood things， but then as soon as I leave， those other people come and leadyou 3）astray， and the good will which had just begun to 4）sprout is againdestroyed.” Followingthis， Mencius drewseveral more analogies，urging the King of Qito completely devotehimself to governing hiscountry.

1） eloquent adj. 雄辩的；有口才的

2） wicked adj. 邪恶的；恶毒的

3） astray adv. 走错方向；误入歧途

4） sprout v. 发芽；出现

孟子生活在战国时期。他不但学问高深，而且能言善辩，往往能以生动的比喻说服执政者改变主意。

每个人都认为齐王昏庸、没有主见，轻信小人谗言。孟子对这些舆论很不满，于是对齐王说：“您不要误以为我说您不明智。天下人都知道，植物需要阳光的滋润。如果您把它放在太阳底下晒一天，再放在阴冷的地方冻上十天，那么，即使那些容易生长的植物也不会长好。同样地，我在您身边的时间很短，即使您接受我一些好的建议，有了一点从善的决心，但只要我一离开，那些奸臣就会把您引入歧途，那从善的决心就会止于萌芽状态。”接着，孟子又打了几个比喻以督促齐王安心治理国家。

Fill in the blanks：

1. If you expose them to_________for a day， and then keep them in dark for ten days， even those plants which grow easily will not do well.

2. Mencius drew several more analogies， urging the King of Qi to completely_________himself_________governing his country.

Know More

The synonymous idioms of “to sun something for one day and then freezeit for ten days” are： give up halfway， be of two minds， have a beginning but noend.

和“一曝十寒”同義的成语有“半途而废”“三心二意”“有始无终”。

参考答案：1. sunlight 2. devote; to