厚积而薄发

厚積而薄發
hòujī'érbófā
idiom

Meanings

  1. 1 accumulate thickly and release sparingly
  2. 2 build up vast knowledge and draw on it sparingly

Examples

Bóguān'éryuēqǔ, hòujī'érbófā.
Read widely but select carefully; accumulate thickly and release sparingly.
Zuò xuéwèn yào hòujī'érbófā, bùnéng jíyúqiúchéng.
Scholarship requires accumulating deeply and releasing sparingly; you can't rush results.

Tips

history
From Su Shi's 《稼说送张琥》 (Song dynasty): 博观而约取,厚积而薄发. Su Shi likens scholarship to farming - store a great harvest, dispense only a little at a time. Regularly cited in Chinese university mottos.
usage
Some sources transcribe here as bó (thin, sparse); others as bò. Standard modern reading is bó fā. Often paired with 博观而约取.

Stroke Order

hòu
ér
báo