不远千里

Pronunciation: bù yuǎn qiān lǐ Literal meaning: Not consider a thousand miles far

Origin & Usage

Mencius opens with King Hui of Liang receiving him: 叟！不远千里而来，亦将有以利吾国乎 — venerable sir, you did not count a thousand (千) li (里) as far (远), so you must have something to profit my state. Mencius refuses the framing and answers that a king should ask about benevolence rather than profit, which is the point of the anecdote. The four characters kept the courtesy and dropped the argument. Chinese uses them of somebody who has travelled a long way on your account, usually in thanks, and the 不 negates the distance rather than the journey: the traveller did not think of it as far.

Examples

English: "He traveled across the country just to see her."

Chinese: 他不远千里，穿越全国只为见她一面。