出chū門mén看kàn天tiān色sè，進jìn門mén看kàn臉liǎn色sè

What does 出門看天色，進門看臉色 (chū mén kàn tiān sè jìn mén kàn liǎn sè) mean?

出門看天色，進門看臉色 (chū mén kàn tiān sè jìn mén kàn liǎn sè) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "leaving door look at sky color, entering door look at face color." In use it means: Read the weather before going out; read people's moods before engaging with them. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Earth note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Monkey.

Literally: "leaving door look at sky color, entering door look at face color."

The reading

The farmer who leaves the house without looking at the sky is not brave but unprepared. The person who enters a room without reading the emotional weather inside is the same. Both the sky and the face tell you what they are holding before they tell you anything else, and both are readable if you have learned to look. Read the room.

What kind of proverb it is

• Typeyànyǔ 諺語
• FocusPresent-minded
• Element土 Earth
• Zodiac tie猴 Year of the Monkey

Source Traditional Chinese folk proverb (suyu)

Sits beside

Keep reading

Return to the Proverb Pond to draw another of the eighty-seven, or hear one read aloud. Read the rest of its chapter in Wisdom & Learning, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Monkey, Year of the Frog, and Year of the Rat.