Hé qiánbèimen de chéngjiù xiāngbǐ, wǒ zuò de zhè diǎn shì búguò shì cānghǎi-yísù.
Compared with what those before me achieved, the little I have done is a mere drop in the ocean.
Tips
history
From Su Shi's 《前赤壁赋》 (1082): boating below the Red Cliff, he reflects that people are mayflies lodged between heaven and earth, tiny as one grain of millet in the vast blue sea.
usage
Often modest: said of one's own small contribution or knowledge. Note that 一 takes the second tone before 粟.
