飞黄腾达

Pronunciation: fēi huáng téng dá Literal meaning: Flying yellow horse soaring

Origin & Usage

飞黄 is a legendary horse, and 腾达 is its rising and getting away — Han Yu uses the image in a poem urging his son to study, the fast horse going up and off while the toad on the ground is not even looked at. The comparison is the unkind part and it survives in the phrase's tone. Somebody whose career has taken off, usually from people who have stayed where they were — and it carries a faint edge that 平步青云 does not quite have.

Examples

English: "She rose from humble beginnings to great success."

Chinese: 她从贫寒起步飞黄腾达。