諺語 · a single proverb
一而再，再而三
What does 一而再，再而三 (yī ér zài zài ér sān) mean?
一而再，再而三 (yī ér zài zài ér sān) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "once, and again, again and three times." In use it means: Do something again and again; persist repeatedly. 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 Ox.
Literally: "once, and again, again and three times."
The reading
Three times is not an arbitrary number; it is the threshold where repetition becomes intention. The first time is accident, the second is coincidence, and the third time is a pattern being established or a determination being demonstrated. The one who comes back a third time has decided something the first and second time could not have proven.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Zuozhuan 左傳·莊公十年 (Zhuāng Gōng Year 10)
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 Perseverance & the Long Road, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Ox, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Tiger.
Questions
Is 一而再，再而三 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 一而再，再而三 (yī ér zài zài ér sān) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語), and it comes from Zuozhuan 左傳·莊公十年 (Zhuāng Gōng Year 10). It is living Chinese heritage, given here with per-character pinyin and its source so you can trust the line, not a phrase invented in English.
How do you pronounce 一而再，再而三?
In Mandarin it is yī ér zài zài ér sān. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 一而再，再而三 aloud in Mandarin.