凿壁借光 — “Chisel a hole in the wall to borrow light”
凿壁借光 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to study diligently under difficult or impoverished circumstances, often by ingenious means, such as borrowing light from a neighbor through a chiseled hole in the wall; to persevere in learning despite hardship”. Literally, “Chisel a hole in the wall to borrow light”.
凿壁借光 Pronunciation and Pinyin
凿壁借光 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 凿壁借光
Origin and Story of 凿壁借光
During the Western Han Dynasty, Kuang Heng, who later became a prime minister, grew up in extreme poverty and had no means to attend school.
During the day, he worked for a wealthy family who owned many books. At night, without money for lamp oil, he resorted to chiseling a small hole in his earthen wall to borrow light from his neighbor to read. He even offered to work for free for families with books in exchange for the opportunity to read them.
Through his persistent and diligent study, he eventually became the Junior Tutor to the Crown Prince during the reign of Emperor Yuan of Han.
Idioms Related to 凿壁借光
Synonyms of 凿壁借光
Antonyms of 凿壁借光
More idioms starting with 凿
- záo凿záo凿kě可jù据solidly verifiable and usable as evidence
- záo凿záo凿yǒu有jù据supported by solid evidence
- záo凿yuán圆ruì枘fāng方fundamentally incompatible
- záo凿pī坏yǐ以dùn遁live in seclusion and withdraw from official life
- záo凿pī坏ér而dùn遁withdraw from public life
- záo凿pī坯ér而dùn遁live in seclusion, refuse official appointments
- záo凿bì壁xuán悬liáng梁study diligently despite hardship
- záo凿zhù柱qǔ取shū书uphold ancestral teachings
- záo凿yíng楹nà纳shū书meticulously preserve books for posterity
- záo凿pò破hún浑dùn沌Disrupt natural order, causing harm
- záo凿xué穴wèi为jū居to live in caves as a hermit
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Open the tool →Questions about 凿壁借光
What does 凿壁借光 mean?
凿壁借光 (záo bì jiè guāng) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to study diligently under difficult or impoverished circumstances, often by ingenious means, such as borrowing light from a neighbor through a chiseled hole in the wall; to persevere in learning despite hardship”.
How do you pronounce 凿壁借光?
凿壁借光 is pronounced záo bì jiè guāng in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 凿壁借光 literally mean?
Literally, 凿壁借光 means “Chisel a hole in the wall to borrow light”. It is used to mean “to study diligently under difficult or impoverished circumstances, often by ingenious means, such as borrowing light from a neighbor through a chiseled hole in the wall; to persevere in learning despite hardship”.
Where does 凿壁借光 come from?
凿壁借光 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 凿壁借光?
凿：挖。在墙上凿一小孔，借邻居的灯光读书。形容家贫刻苦读书