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千里送鹅毛

千里送鵝毛
qiānlǐsòngémáo
idiom

Meanings

  1. 1 to send a goose feather from a thousand li away
  2. 2 fig. a trifling gift bearing a weighty sentiment
  3. 3 it's the thought that counts

Examples

他从老家寄来几包茶叶，千里送鹅毛，礼轻情意重。
Tā cóng lǎojiā jì lái jǐ bāo cháyè, qiān lǐ sòng é máo, lǐ qīng qíngyì zhòng.
He sent a few packs of tea from his hometown — a goose feather from afar: the gift is slight, the affection weighty.
她送了我一张手写卡片，千里送鹅毛，我很感动。
Tā sòng le wǒ yì zhāng shǒuxiě kǎpiàn, qiān lǐ sòng é máo, wǒ hěn gǎndòng.
She sent me a handwritten card — a small token from far, but I was deeply touched.

Tips

history
Xinhua 成语 traces the proverb to Ouyang Xiu's (欧阳修) Song poem 《梅圣俞寄银杏》: 鹅毛赠千里，所重以其人 — 'A goose feather sent a thousand li — what matters is the giver.' A later folk tale about the Tang envoy Mian Bogao (缅伯高), who lost his tribute swan en route and sent only its feather with a note reading 礼轻情意重，千里送鹅毛 ('the gift is light, the feeling heavy'), fixed the image in popular use.
usage
Always goes with the second half 礼轻情意重. A stock polite phrase for giving modest presents — especially long-distance ones — without embarrassment.

Stroke Order

千 qiān
里 lǐ
送 sòng
鹅 é
毛 máo