树高千丈，叶落归根 shù gāo qiān zhàng ， yè luò guī gēn

DEFINITIONS

  1. fig. a tree may grow a thousand zhang high, but its leaves return to their roots (proverb)
  2. fig. everything has its ancestral home
  3. in old age, an expatriate returns home

CHARACTERS

树 shù
HSK 3
tree; plant; set up, establish
高 gāo
HSK 1
high, tall; lofty, elevated
千 qiān
HSK 2
thousand; many, numerous; very; (Cant.) a cheater, swindler
丈 zhàng
HSK 2
unit of length equal 3.3 meters; gentleman, man, husband
叶 yè
HSK 4
to harmonize, to rhyme; to unite; (borrowed for) leaf
落 luò
HSK 4
fall, drop; net income, surplus
归 guī
HSK 5
return; return to, revert to
根 gēn
HSK 3
root, base(d on); foundation