187Japanese idiom 四字熟語
捲土重来
けんどちょうらいKendo chōrai
“Returning in a cloud of dust.”
The meaning
After a defeat, gathering strength and coming back stronger — so strongly the return raises dust on the road. Defeat is only final if you do not return.
At the origin
An image from the Chinese poet Du Mu, musing on a defeated general who might have returned.
The characters
In practice
After a failure, set the date of your return before mourning the loss.
Editorial note
Chinese origin (poem by Du Mu).
Themes
Similar proverbs
- 200 人の一生は重荷を負うて遠き道を行くが如し A man's life is a long road walked under a burden; there is no need to hurry.
- 087 三度目の正直 The third time is the charm.
- 034 笑う門には福来る Fortune comes to homes that laugh.
- 212 山路来て何やらゆかしすみれ草 Mountain path — something quietly moving: a wild violet.
- 222 我と来て遊べや親のない雀 Come and play with me, sparrow without parents.