铁杵磨成针

鐵杵磨成針

tiěchǔmóchéngzhēn

idiom

Meanings

1 to grind an iron pestle into a needle
2 with enough perseverance, any task can be accomplished
3 slow and steady effort conquers anything

Characters

Examples

HSK 3

学外语就像铁杵磨成针，贵在坚持。

Xué wàiyǔ jiù xiàng tiěchǔmóchéngzhēn, guì zài jiānchí.

Learning a foreign language is like grinding an iron pestle into a needle - what matters is perseverance.

HSK 6

他用十年时间磨出一本词典，真是铁杵磨成针。

Tā yòng shí nián shíjiān mó chū yī běn cídiǎn, zhēnshì tiěchǔmóchéngzhēn.

He spent ten years grinding out a dictionary - truly grinding an iron pestle into a needle.

Tips

history

From a Song-dynasty work 《方舆胜览·眉州·磨针溪》, relating a legend about Li Bai: as a boy he gave up on his studies and wandered off, but by a stream he met an old woman grinding an iron pestle. She said, 'I want to make it into a needle.' Moved, Li Bai returned to his books and finished his studies.

usage

Often expanded to 只要功夫深，铁杵磨成针 ('as long as one puts in deep effort, an iron pestle can be ground into a needle').

Stroke Order

铁 tiě

杵 chǔ

磨 mó

成 chéng

针 zhēn