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前途无量 (qián tú wú liàng) — to have boundless prospects; a future full of unlimited potential

Definition

Idiom meaning 'a future with unlimited potential' — a strong, formal compliment, often for someone's career or a venture's outlook.

idiom
to have boundless prospectsa future full of unlimited potential

Examples

  • ，前途无量。
    Zhè ge nián qīng rén cōng ming yòu nǔ lì, zhēn shì qián tú wú liàng.
    This young person is smart and hardworking — truly boundless prospects.
  • ，。
    Zhǐ yào hǎo hǎo gān, nǐ yí dìng huì qián tú wú liàng.
    As long as you work hard, you will definitely have a bright future.
  • ，，前途无量。
    Gōng sī gāng shàng shì, fā zhǎn kōng jiān hěn dà, yuán gōng men yě jué de zì jǐ qián tú wú liàng.
    The company just went public, with lots of room to grow, and employees also feel they have boundless prospects.

Origin

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

In the older form of 前, 止 (foot) and 舟 (boat) showed a foot on a boat moving forward; in the current 前 those parts are shortened.

Open 前 →

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chuò
Sound part声符shēngfú
余
余yú途
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

途 is made from 辶 (written fully as 辵), a walking part, and 余, which gives the sound.

Open 途 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 無; 无 is its simplified writing.

For the simplified 无, the story is about 無. 無 drew a person dancing with ox tails held in both hands to pray for rain, then was borrowed for 'have no', so the picture does not explain that meaning.

Open 无 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 日日rìsun
  • 東東dōngbag; east

量 has 日 (sun) over 東 (bag; east). Some explanations suggest measuring under the sun or the sun rising in the east, but the exact origin is unclear.

Open 量 →
Appears in
Idioms & Set PhrasesSuccess & Failure

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