精卫填海

精衛填海

jīngwèi-tiánhǎi

idiom

Meanings

1 Jingwei fills the sea
2 unwavering determination against impossible odds
3 a hopeless task pursued with unshakable will

Characters

(part of name 精卫)

(part of name 精卫)

Examples

HSK 7-9

他以精卫填海的精神投入科研。

Tā yǐ jīngwèi-tiánhǎi de jīngshén tóurù kēyán.

He threw himself into research with a Jingwei-fills-the-sea spirit.

HSK 7-9

虽然希望渺茫，他仍像精卫填海一样坚持。

Suīrán xīwàng miǎománg, tā réng xiàng jīngwèi-tiánhǎi yīyàng jiānchí.

Though hope was faint, he persevered like Jingwei filling the sea.

HSK 7-9

治沙工程需要精卫填海的毅力。

Zhì shā gōngchéng xūyào jīngwèi-tiánhǎi de yìlì.

Desert control demands a Jingwei-like perseverance.

Tips

history

From 《山海经·北山经》: 精卫 was 女娃, the daughter of Emperor Yan (Yandi), who drowned in the Eastern Sea. Her spirit became a bird that forever carries sticks and stones from the western mountains to fill in the sea that took her life. A myth of impossible but unbroken resolve.

Stroke Order

精 jīng

卫 wèi

填 tián

海 hǎi