Chinese characters and pinyin
Simplified: 知足常乐
Traditional: 知足常樂
Pinyin: zhī zú cháng lè
Literal translation
Know contentment and often be happy.
Natural English meaning
Recognizing what is enough brings lasting peace and happiness.
Closest English equivalent
Contentment is great wealth.
The Chinese idiom connects an inner sense of enough directly with everyday happiness.
When to use it
Use it when discussing gratitude, simplicity, or freedom from endless comparison.
When not to use it
Do not use it to tell people to accept injustice or avoid healthy ambition.
Example sentence
他生活简单，却总是很快乐，真是知足常乐。
He lives simply and happily; contentment gives him a sense of abundance.
Origin and cultural context
Rooted in classical Daoist discussions of knowing what is enough and later condensed into a common idiom.
Classification: idiom. This label distinguishes a complete proverb or popular saying from a compact idiom or a quotation preserved from a classical text.
