老鼠拖木锨，大头在后头 lǎo shǔ tuō mù xiān ， dà tóu zài hòu tou

the tip of the iceberg

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency Unknown

Definitions

  1. 1. the tip of the iceberg
  2. 2. when the mice drag a shovel, the biggest thing comes second
  3. 3. the cockroach principle

Characters

Character Meaning
老 lǎo HSK 1
old (of people)
鼠 shǔ HSK 5
mouse; rat
拖 tuō HSK 6
to drag; to delay; to drag on
木 mù HSK 5
tree; wood; wooden
锨 xiān
shovel
大 dà HSK 1
big; large; great
头 tóu HSK 3
head; the top; end
在 zài HSK 1
(located) at; (to be) in
后 hòu HSK 1
behind; after; later
头 tou HSK 3
head; the top; end