Chinese idiom · 成语
青梅竹马
Meaning
Green plums and bamboo horses; childhood sweethearts.
Character by character
Origin and story
Literary narrative poemLi Bai's first Chang Gan Xing presents a young wife's memories in her own voice. She recalls playing outside as a little girl while the boy who would become her husband rode a bamboo stick as a pretend horse and played with green plums. They lived in the same neighborhood, innocent of suspicion. Marriage follows, then a painful separation when he travels far away.
The poem ends with her asking for news of his return and offering to travel to meet him. The idiom gathers the green plums and bamboo horse from that childhood scene. It evokes companions who grew up together, often with romantic associations, rather than guaranteeing that every childhood friendship becomes a marriage.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
他们俩青梅竹马，如今开了一家小咖啡馆。
The two of them grew up together as childhood sweethearts and now run a little café.
Usually refers to a boy and girl close since childhood; often, but not inevitably, romantic.