胸怀大志

胸懷大志

xiōnghuái-dàzhì

idiom #51,012

Meanings

1 to harbor great ambitions in one's breast
2 to cherish lofty aspirations
3 to have grand goals

Characters

aspiration; will

Examples

HSK 6

年轻人应该胸怀大志，脚踏实地。

Niánqīngrén yīnggāi xiōnghuáidàzhì, jiǎotàshídì.

Young people should have lofty ambitions while keeping their feet on the ground.

HSK 6

胸怀大志的人不会满足于眼前的小成就。

Xiōnghuáidàzhì de rén bùhuì mǎnzú yú yǎnqián de xiǎo chéngjiù.

People with great ambitions aren't satisfied with small immediate wins.

HSK 7-9

他从小就胸怀大志，立志当科学家。

Tā cóngxiǎo jiù xiōnghuáidàzhì, lìzhì dāng kēxuéjiā.

Since childhood he has had great ambitions - he wants to be a scientist.

Tips

history

From 罗贯中's Ming-dynasty 三国演义 (chapter 21): in the famous 'plum-warmed wine' scene, 曹操 defines a true hero as one 胸怀大志, 腹有良谋 - 'with great ambition in his breast and fine strategies in his belly,' before pointing at Liu Bei as just such a man.

Stroke Order

胸 xiōng

怀 huái

大 dà

志 zhì