寅吃卯粮

寅吃卯糧
yínchīmǎoliáng
  1. lit. eating away next year's food in advance
  2. fig. to dip into the next month's check
  3. live now, pay later

CEDICT

  1. (figurative) to prematurely overconsume; unable to make both ends meet
  2. to prematurely overconsume; unable to make both ends meet

Wiktionary

寅年就吃掉了卯年的食粮。比喻入不敷出，预支以后的用项。《官场现形记．第一五回》：「就是我们总爷，也是寅吃卯粮，先缺后空。」也作「寅支卯粮」。

重編國語辭典

收入不够支出，预支以后的用项

維基詞典

Entry Composition

1 寅 yín
  1. 3rd earthly branch: 3-5 a.m., 1st solar month (4th February-5th March), year of the Tiger
  2. ancient Chinese compass point: 60°
=2 吃 chī
  1. to eat; to consume
  2. to eat at (a cafeteria etc)
  3. to eradicate; to destroy
  4. to absorb
  5. to suffer (shock, injury, defeat etc)
=2 吃 chī variant of 吃 chī
=3 卯 mǎo
  1. mortise (slot cut into wood to receive a tenon)
  2. 4th earthly branch: 5–7 a.m., 2nd solar month (6th March–4th April), Year of the Rabbit
  3. ancient Chinese compass point: 90° (east)
  4. (coll.) to concentrate one's strength (variant of 铆 mǎo)
=3 卯 mǎo variant of 卯 mǎo
=3 卯 mǎo old variant of 卯 mǎo
4 粮 liáng
  1. grain
  2. food
  3. provisions
  4. agricultural tax paid in grain