拋磚引玉 pāo zhuān yǐn yù

DEFINITIONS

  1. lit. throw out a brick and get jade thrown back (idiom)
  2. fig. to attract others' interest or suggestions by putting forward one's own modest ideas to get the ball rolling

CHARACTERS

拋 pāo throw (away), abandon, reject
磚 zhuān tile, brick
引 yǐn to pull, draw out, attract; to stretch
玉 yù jade, precious stone, gem