才高八斗

cáigāobādǒu
idiom

Meanings

  1. 1 talent measuring eight pecks out of ten
  2. 2 extraordinarily gifted
  3. 3 towering literary talent

Examples

Tā cóngxiǎo cái gāo bā dǒu, shí suì jiù néng xiě shī.
He was extraordinarily gifted from childhood — writing poetry at ten.
Suīrán cái gāo bā dǒu, tā zuòrén què hěn qiānxū.
Though vastly talented, he carries himself modestly.

Tips

history
From 《·》: Southern-dynasty poet Xie Lingyun boasted that of the world's total talent of (ten dou), (Cao Zhi) alone had eight, he himself one, and all others shared the last one. The phrase was originally Xie's praise of Cao Zhi.

Stroke Order

cái
gāo
dòu