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失败是成功之母

shī bài shì chéng gōng zhī mǔ
Failure is the mother of success.

Failure is the mother of success.

Identical in meaning to the previous saying, this is the mor...

Identical in meaning to the previous saying, this is the more common colloquial version. It emphasizes that every failure contains the seed of a future success, provided one learns from it.

This is the everyday form of the proverb, used in casual conversation, while the version with '乃' is more literary. Both are interchangeable in practice.

Someone might say this after a failed attempt at cooking a new dish, or when a friend loses a game, to frame the loss as a learning opportunity.

The saying serves as a quick, culturally recognized way to offer encouragement. It signals that the speaker values effort and learning over immediate results, aligning with the Confucian work ethic.

#wisdom #hard-times #patience

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