画龙点睛
画龙点睛 (huà lóng diǎn jīng) literally means “dot dragon's eyes” and expresses “add crucial finishing touch”. This idiom is used when describing situations involving wisdom and learning.
Also searched as: hua long dian jing, hua long dian jing,画龙点睛 meaning, 画龙点睛 in english
Add crucial finishing touch
Pronunciation: huà lóng diǎn jīng Literal meaning: Dot dragon's eyes
Origin & Usage
Zhang Sengyou painted four dragons on a temple wall in Jinling and left them without pupils, saying that if he dotted the eyes they would fly away. Pressed, he dotted two. Thunder split the wall and those two went up into the cloud; the two he had left blind were still there. The account is in Zhang Yanyuan's record of famous painters. Dotting (点) the eyes (睛) of the dragon (画龙) therefore names the last small addition that turns a competent thing into a live one — a sentence in a report, a detail in a design.
Examples
English: "Her final edit transformed the good presentation into an excellent one"
Chinese: 她最后的修改把这个好的演讲变成了一个出色的演讲
Related Chinese Idioms
Similar idioms about wisdom & learning
融会贯通
róng huì guàn tōng
Integrate many strands into one understanding
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学海无涯
xué hǎi wú yá
Learning is limitless
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知行合一
zhī xíng hé yī
Practice what you know
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举一反三
jǔ yī fǎn sān
Learn many from one example
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温故知新
wēn gù zhī xīn
Learn new through studying old
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读万卷书
dú wàn juàn shū
Read extensively for knowledge
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抛砖引玉
pāo zhuān yǐn yù
Offer modest view to inspire better
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入乡随俗
rù xiāng suí sú
Adopt the customs of where you are
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does 画龙点睛 mean in English?
画龙点睛 (huà lóng diǎn jīng) literally translates to “Dot dragon's eyes” and is used to express “Add crucial finishing touch”. This Chinese idiom belongs to the Wisdom & Learning category.
When is 画龙点睛 used?
Situation: Her final edit transformed the good presentation into an excellent one
What is the pinyin for 画龙点睛?
The pinyin pronunciation for 画龙点睛 is “huà lóng diǎn jīng”.
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