千里之堤,潰於蟻穴 qiān lǐ zhī dī , kuì yú yǐ xué

DEFINITIONS

  1. an ant hole may cause the collapse of a great dike (idiom)
  2. huge damage may result from a moment's negligence

CHARACTERS

千 qiān thousand; many, numerous; very; (Cant.) a cheater, swindler
里 lǐ unit of distance; village; lane
之 zhī marks preceding phrase as modifier of following phrase; it, him her, them; go to
堤 dī dike
潰 kuì flooding river; militarily defeat
於 yú in, at, on; interjection alas!
蟻 yǐ ants
穴 xué cave, den, hole; KangXi radical 116