不远千里 (bù yuǎn qiān lǐ) — to make light of traveling a long distance; to not mind a long journey

Definition

An idiom praising someone who willingly travels a great distance for a worthy purpose — usually a teacher, scholar, or guest arriving from far away.

idiom
to make light of traveling a long distanceto not mind a long journey

Examples

  • 不远千里。
    Tā bù yuǎn qiān lǐ lái zhōng guó xué xí zhōng wén.
    He made light of traveling a thousand li to come to China to study Chinese.
  • 不远千里。
    Nà wèi jiào shòu bù yuǎn qiān lǐ lái dào zhè ge xiǎo chéng shì jiǎng kè.
    That professor made light of traveling a long distance to give lectures in this small city.
  • ，不远千里。
    Wèi le jiàn lǎo péng you yí miàn, tā bù yuǎn qiān lǐ gǎn dào le běi jīng.
    In order to meet an old friend, he made light of the long journey and hurried to Beijing.

Origin

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The picture in 不 originally showed a flower’s calyx; the “no” sense came later from a related character, not from this picture.

Open 不 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuòwalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
元
元yuán远yuǎn
Same sound today

远 combines 辶, meaning walk, with 元, used for its sound.

Open 远 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
一一yīone, signifying a number
Sound part声符shēngfú
人
人rén千qiān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

千 pairs 人, whose sound was similar, with 一, a number stroke; the extra line was explained as extension, and a thousand is a number reached by extending counting.

Open 千 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 裡; 里 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 里 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (里, 里面) it is 裡; in others (公里) it is 里 or 裏.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
衤Written in full as衣yīclothes
Sound part声符shēngfú
里
里lǐ裡lǐ
Same sound today

The form 裡 pairs 衤 (clothes) with 里 as a sound component.

Open 里 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.