大同小异

Pronunciation: dà tóng xiǎo yì Literal meaning: Largely same, slightly different

Origin & Usage

The Zhuangzi preserves Hui Shi's distinction: things broadly alike and slightly unlike he called the small sameness-and-difference, and the fact that all things are both wholly alike and wholly unlike he called the great one. The idiom keeps the first half — largely (大) the same (同), slightly (小) different (异) — and drops the paradox. What it asserts is that the differences are real and do not matter, which is why it tends to close an argument rather than open one. Competing products, rival proposals, and two explanations that turn out to come to the same thing.

Examples

English: "Most smartphones today are largely similar with only minor differences."

Chinese: 现在的智能手机大同小异，只有细微差别。