兵马未动，粮草先行

Traditional: 兵馬未動，糧草先行

bīng mǎ wèi dòng , liáng cǎo xiān xíng

Dictionary entry

before the troops move, fodder and provisions go first (idiom); logistics comes before military maneuvers

What does 兵马未动，粮草先行 mean?

兵马未动，粮草先行 (bīng mǎ wèi dòng , liáng cǎo xiān xíng) has the following dictionary meaning.

1before the troops move, fodder and provisions go first (idiom); logistics comes before military maneuvers

2an army marches on its stomach

Character breakdown

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兵bīngsoldiers · a force 马Mǎsurname Ma · abbr. for Malaysia 馬來西亞|马来西亚[Ma3 lai2 xi1 ya4]未wèinot yet · did not 动dòng(of sth) to move · to set in movement 粮liánggrain · food 草cǎovariant of 草[cao3]先xiānbeforehand; first; earlier · at first; originally 行xíngokay · all right

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How to pronounce 兵马未动，粮草先行

兵马未动，粮草先行

bīng mǎ wèi dòng , liáng cǎo xiān xíng

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Base dictionary data: CC-CEDICT · CC BY-SA 4.0.