远水不救近火
yuǎn​shuǐ​bù​jiù​jìn​huǒ

a slow remedy is useless for an emergency

  1. 远 遠 yuǎn adjective
    far
    far away in space or time; distant; remote
  2. 水 shuǐ noun
    water
    water; a liquid, juice, or lotion
  3. 不 bù adverb
    not
    Negative adverb used before verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs to indicate negation; also used as a bound-form prefix to form terms with opposite meanings
  4. 救 jiù
    to stop
    to stop or put out something harmful, such as a fire; to provide relief from a disaster
  5. 近 jìn adjective
    near
    near in distance or time; close; nearby; recent
  6. 火 huǒ noun
    fire
    fire; light and heat produced by burning; flames