牵一发而动全身 qiān yī fà ér dòng quán shēn

DEFINITIONS

  1. lit. pull one hair and the whole body moves
  2. fig. a slight change will affect everything else
  3. the butterfly effect

CHARACTERS

牵 qiān
HSK 6
drag, pull, lead by hand
一 yī
HSK 1
one; a, an; alone
发 fà
HSK 3
issue, dispatch, send out; hair
而 ér
HSK 3
and; and then; and yet; but
动 dòng
HSK 2
move, happen; movement, action
全 quán
HSK 4
maintain, keep whole or intact
身 shēn
HSK 2
body; trunk, hull; rad. no. 158