滴水穿石 — “Persistence and consistent effort”
滴水穿石 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Persistence and consistent effort”. No matter how small, can overcome great difficulties or achieve significant results over time. Literally, “Water drops wear through stone”.
滴水穿石 Pronunciation and Pinyin
滴水穿石 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 滴水穿石
Origin and Story of 滴水穿石
During the Song Dynasty, Zhang Guaiyai, the county magistrate of Chongyang, was known for his honesty, incorruptibility, and impartiality.
One day, he discovered that a treasury clerk, who was in charge of the iron vault, had stolen a single coin from the money vault.
Zhang Guaiyai believed that although the amount was small, the nature of the crime was serious and demanded severe punishment. The official refused to accept the judgment.
Zhang Guaiyai sentenced him to death and wrote in the verdict: 'One coin a day, a thousand coins in a thousand days; a saw-rope cuts wood, water drops wear through stone.'
Idioms Related to 滴水穿石
Synonyms of 滴水穿石
More idioms starting with 滴
- dī滴rú如chē车zhóu轴raindrops as big as carriage axles
- dī滴shuǐ水bù不lòu漏meticulous and thorough, leaving no loopholes
- dī滴shuǐ水bù不chàn羼absolutely pure and unadulterated
- dī滴shuǐ水chéng成bīng冰water drops freeze; extremely cold weather
- dī滴shuǐ水chéng成dòng冻dripping water instantly freezes
- dī滴shuǐ水chéng成hé河Small efforts accumulate into significant results
- dī滴shuǐ水nán难xiāo消Hard to accept even a small kindness
- dī滴dī滴dā答dā答drip-drip, tap-tap
- dī滴fěn粉cuō搓sū酥heavily made up and elaborately adorned
- dī滴jiǔ酒bù不zhān沾never touches alcohol
- dī滴lǐ里dū嘟lu噜hanging haphazardly and unevenly
- dī滴lǐ里dā耷lā拉drooping or hanging loosely
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Open the tool →Questions about 滴水穿石
What does 滴水穿石 mean?
滴水穿石 (dī shuǐ chuān shí) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Persistence and consistent effort”.
How do you pronounce 滴水穿石?
滴水穿石 is pronounced dī shuǐ chuān shí in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 滴水穿石 literally mean?
Literally, 滴水穿石 means “Water drops wear through stone”. It is used to mean “Persistence and consistent effort”.
Where does 滴水穿石 come from?
滴水穿石 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 滴水穿石?
水不断下滴，可以闹穿石头。比喻只要有恒心，不断努力，事情一定成功。