北叟失马

北叟失馬
běisǒushīmǎ
  1. lit. the old man lost his horse, but it all turned out for the best (idiom)
  2. fig. a blessing in disguise
  3. it's an ill wind that blows nobody any good

CEDICT

比喻世事的福祸无常，无法一时论定。参见「塞翁失马」条。

重編國語辭典

Entry Composition

1 北 běi
  1. north
  2. (classical) to be defeated
2 叟 sǒu
  1. old gentleman
  2. old man
3 失马 shīmǎ to lose a horse

Related entries

塞翁失马 sàiwēngshīmǎ
  1. lit. the old man lost his horse, but it all turned out for the best (idiom)
  2. fig. a blessing in disguise
  3. it's an ill wind that blows nobody any good
塞翁失马

Every cloud has a silver lining.

Source: Tatoeba

塞翁失马安知非福 sàiwēngshīmǎānzhīfēifú
  1. the old man lost his mare, but it all turned out for the best (idiom); fig. a blessing in disguise
  2. it's an ill wind that blows nobody any good
  3. also written 塞翁失马焉知非福
塞翁失马焉知非福 sàiwēngshīmǎyānzhīfēifú
  1. the old man lost his mare, but it all turned out for the best (idiom); fig. a blessing in disguise
  2. it's an ill wind that blows nobody any good