功亏一篑

Pronunciation: gōng kuī yī kuì
Literal meaning: Work fails one basket

Origin & Usage

The ancient Chinese text 'Hanfeizi' tells of a man who stopped hauling earth (功) one basket (篑) short of completing his mountain, teaching how projects can fail at the very end. Song Dynasty scholars used this story to warn against relaxing effort prematurely. The specific image of a single basket making the difference between success and failure powerfully illustrates how small lapses can undo great efforts.

Examples

English: "The project collapsed due to a small oversight in the final stage"

Chinese: 这个项目因最后阶段的一个小疏忽而失败

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