铁杵成针

Pronunciation: tiě chǔ chéng zhēn Literal meaning: Iron rod becomes needle

Origin & Usage

Li Bai, the story goes, had given up on his studies and was walking away when he met an old woman grinding down an iron pestle (铁杵). Asked what she was doing, she said she was making a needle (针). He went back to his books. The tale is attached to a stream near Meizhou and is told mainly to children, which suits it. It is normally quoted with the conditional that carries the whole argument: 只要功夫深，铁杵磨成针 — given deep enough effort, an iron pestle is ground into a needle.

Examples

English: "Through years of practice, the amateur artist became a master"

Chinese: 通过多年练习，这位业余艺术家成为了大师