一叶障目
一叶障目 (yī yè zhàng mù) literally means “leaf blocks eye” and expresses “miss big picture”. This idiom is used when describing situations involving wisdom and learning.
Also searched as: yi ye zhang mu, yi ye zhang mu,一叶障目 meaning, 一叶障目 in english
Miss big picture
Pronunciation: yī yè zhàng mù Literal meaning: Leaf blocks eye
Origin & Usage
This descends from the Heguanzi, which observes that a single leaf before the eyes hides the mountain, and two beans in the ears hide the thunder — 一叶蔽目，不见泰山. One (一) leaf (叶) blocks (障) the eye (目) not because it is large but because it is close. The obstruction is trivial and the loss of view is total. A small preoccupation that has hidden something obvious — often somebody arguing from a single detail.
Examples
English: "The team got lost in technical details and forgot the project's main goal"
Chinese: 团队陷入技术细节而忘记了项目的主要目标
Related Chinese Idioms
Similar idioms about wisdom & learning
一叶知秋
yī yè zhī qiū
Small signs show big picture
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耳目一新
ěr mù yī xīn
A refreshing new experience
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刮目相看
guā mù xiāng kàn
Reassess someone who has improved
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耳濡目染
ěr rú mù rǎn
Learning unconsciously through constant exposure
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目不转睛
mù bù zhuǎn jīng
Focus intently
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目无全牛
mù wú quán niú
Achieve instinctive mastery
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目不暇给
mù bù xiá jǐ
Too much to take in
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鱼目混珠
yú mù hùn zhū
Passing fakes as genuine
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does 一叶障目 mean in English?
一叶障目 (yī yè zhàng mù) literally translates to “Leaf blocks eye” and is used to express “Miss big picture”. This Chinese idiom belongs to the Wisdom & Learning category.
When is 一叶障目 used?
Situation: The team got lost in technical details and forgot the project's main goal
What is the pinyin for 一叶障目?
The pinyin pronunciation for 一叶障目 is “yī yè zhàng mù”.
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