天高地厚 — “Heaven high, earth deep”
天高地厚 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “originally describes the vastness and immensity of the universe. Later used to express profound kindness or a deep sense of gratitude. It also metaphorically refers to the immense difficulty, seriousness of a situation, or the gravity of relationships, signifying the profound complexities of life or matters”. Literally, “heaven high, earth deep”.
天高地厚 Pronunciation and Pinyin
天高地厚 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 天高地厚
Origin and Story of 天高地厚
In ancient times, it was said that before the world was created, the universe was a chaotic mass of gas, like an egg. Pangu split this mass, and the light, clear gas rose to become the sky, while the heavy, turbid gas sank to form the earth, gradually shaping mountains and rivers.
For 18,000 years, the sky continued to rise and the earth to thicken. But how high the sky was and how deep the earth was, no one could say for certain.
Thus, 'heaven high, earth deep' is used to describe something immeasurable and profound.
Idioms Related to 天高地厚
Synonyms of 天高地厚
More idioms starting with 天
- tiān天shàng上rén人jiān间worlds apart
- tiān天shàng上dì地xià下，，wéi惟wǒ我dú独zūn尊supremely arrogant and self-important
- tiān天shàng上tiān天xià下，，wéi惟wǒ我dú独zūn尊Arrogant and self-important
- tiān天shàng上shǎo少yǒu有，，dì地xià下nán难xún寻extremely rare, unique
- tiān天shàng上shí石lín麟a brilliant and talented son
- tiān天shàng上qí麒lín麟praise a son's exceptional talent
- tiān天xià下yī一jiā家universal brotherhood and harmony
- tiān天xià下wèi为yī一The world united
- tiān天xià下wéi为gōng公The world belongs to everyone
- tiān天xià下wéi为jiā家To make the world one's home
- tiān天xià下wéi为lóng笼the world is a confining cage
- tiān天xià下wū乌yā鸦yī一bān般hēi黑all evil is the same everywhere
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Open the tool →Questions about 天高地厚
What does 天高地厚 mean?
天高地厚 (tiān gāo dì hòu) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “originally describes the vastness and immensity of the universe. Later used to express profound kindness or a deep sense of gratitude. It also metaphorically refers to the immense difficulty, seriousness of a situation, or the gravity of relationships, signifying the profound complexities of life or matters”.
How do you pronounce 天高地厚?
天高地厚 is pronounced tiān gāo dì hòu in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 天高地厚 literally mean?
Literally, 天高地厚 means “heaven high, earth deep”. It is used to mean “originally describes the vastness and immensity of the universe. Later used to express profound kindness or a deep sense of gratitude. It also metaphorically refers to the immense difficulty, seriousness of a situation, or the gravity of relationships, signifying the profound complexities of life or matters”.
Where does 天高地厚 come from?
天高地厚 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 天高地厚?
原形容天地的广大，后形容恩德极深厚。也比喻事情的艰巨、严重，关系的重大。