见微知著

見微知著

jiànwēi-zhīzhù

idiom

Meanings

1 to see the small and know the great
2 to deduce a whole story from tiny clues
3 to discern trends from minute signs

Characters

manifest; obvious

Examples

HSK 6

经济学家从细节中见微知著，预测了这次危机。

Jīngjìxuéjiā cóng xìjié zhōng jiànwēi-zhīzhù, yùcè le zhè cì wēijī.

From the small details, the economist saw the bigger pattern and predicted this crisis.

HSK 7-9

优秀的侦探都善于见微知著。

Yōuxiù de zhēntàn dōu shànyú jiànwēi-zhīzhù.

Excellent detectives are all skilled at deducing the whole picture from tiny clues.

Tips

history

From 《韩非子·说林上》 (Han Feizi, Forest of Persuasions): 圣人见微以知萌，见端以知末 - "the sage sees the faint sign and knows what is sprouting; sees the beginning and knows the end." Han Fei used the idiom to praise foresight; it has been a staple of Chinese strategic thought ever since.

memory

见 (see) + 微 (faint/tiny) + 知 (know) + 著 (obvious/manifest) → "see-tiny → know-obvious." The two halves are deliberately opposed: tiny vs. manifest, signal vs. result.

Stroke Order

见 jiàn

微 wēi

知 zhī

著 zhù