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扶摇直上九万里

扶搖直上九萬里
fúyáozhíshàngjiǔwànlǐ
phrase

Meanings

  1. 1 to ride the whirlwind straight up ninety thousand li
  2. 2 to soar skyward without limit
  3. 3 (lit.) riding the whirlwind, straight up ninety thousand li

Examples

他自创业以来，公司扶摇直上九万里，估值翻了十倍。
Tā zì chuàngyè yǐlái, gōngsī fúyáo zhí shàng jiǔ wàn lǐ, gūzhí fān le shí bèi.
Since founding it, his company has soared into the stratosphere — valuation tenfold.
年轻人就要有扶摇直上九万里的志气。
Niánqīng rén jiù yào yǒu fúyáo zhí shàng jiǔ wàn lǐ de zhìqì.
Young people should have the ambition to ride the whirlwind ninety thousand li.

Tips

history
From Li Bai's (李白) Tang-dynasty 《上李邕》 (To Li Yong), paraphrasing the Peng bird fable of 《庄子·逍遥游》 (Zhuangzi: Free and Easy Wandering). Full couplet: 『大鹏一日同风起，扶摇直上九万里』— 'one day the great Peng rises with the wind, riding the whirlwind straight up ninety thousand li.' Zhuangzi's original describes the Peng's flight as 『抟扶摇而上者九万里』.
usage
扶摇 here is a whirlwind / spiraling updraft — not 'support and shake.' The shorter idiom 扶摇直上 is more common in everyday speech for rapid promotion or soaring prices.

Stroke Order

扶 fú
摇 yáo
直 zhí
上 shàng
九 jiǔ
万 wàn
里 lǐ