無心插柳柳成陰

无心插柳柳成阴
wúxīnchāliǔliǔchéngyīn
  1. lit. idly poke a stick in the mud and it grows into a tree to shade you
  2. (fig.) unintentional actions may bring unexpected success
  3. also written 無心插柳柳成蔭

CEDICT

（諺語）無意間的舉動，竟產生意想不到的結果。

重編國語辭典

無意間的舉動，竟產生意想不到的結果

維基詞典

Entry Composition

1 無心插柳 wúxīnchāliǔ
  1. (idiom) (of a good outcome) unanticipated
  2. serendipitous
  3. fortuitous
=2 柳 liǔ willow
=2 柳 liǔ old variant of 柳 liǔ
=2 柳 liǔ old variant of 柳 liǔ
3 成 chéng
  1. to succeed
  2. to finish
  3. to complete
  4. to accomplish
  5. to become
  6. to turn into
  7. to be all right
  8. OK!
  9. one tenth
4 陰 yīn
  1. overcast (weather)
  2. cloudy
  3. shady
  4. Yin (the negative principle of Yin and Yang)
  5. negative (electric.)
  6. feminine
  7. moon
  8. implicit
  9. hidden
  10. genitalia

Containing this entry

有意栽花花不發，無心插柳柳成陰 yǒuyìzāihuāhuābùfā,wúxīnchāliǔliǔchéngyīn
  1. lit. you plant a garden and the flowers do not bloom, you poke a stick in the mud and it grows into a tree
  2. fig. things do not always turn out as one would expect
  3. well-laid plans may fail, and success may come where you least expect it