(Yuè guò shíwǔ, guāngmíng shǎo;) rén dào zhōngnián, wànshì xiū.

(月過十五光明少;) 人到中年萬事休。

Lit (After the fifteenth [of the lunar month, when the moon is full] the moon [becomes less and] less bright;) [when] people get to middle age, everything comes to a halt.

Fig After middle age, nothing great can be accomplished.

Note [Cf. Gǔ-Jīn Xiǎoshuō, chap. 33; the second part is more commonly used alone (q.v.).]

Topics ACCOMPLISHMENT AGE Gǔ-Jīn Xiǎoshuō MIDDLE_AGE