磨砺

磨礪

mólì

verb #36,148

Meanings

1 to sharpen on a grindstone
2 to hone (skills, character) through training and hardship

Characters

to grind, polish

Examples

HSK 3

他在工作中不断磨砺自己。

Tā zài gōngzuò zhōng búduàn mólì zìjǐ.

He keeps honing himself in his work.

HSK 5

艰难的环境磨砺了他的意志。

Jiānnán de huánjìng mólì le tā de yìzhì.

Tough circumstances tempered his will.

Tips

memory

Both 磨 (mó, 'to grind') and 砺 (lì, 'whetstone') refer to sharpening. Originally about literally grinding a blade against stone, the word now mostly describes character-building hardship - like English 'to be tempered' or 'to be forged'.

Stroke Order

磨 mó

砺 lì