小试牛刀 (xiǎo shì niú dāo) — (idiom) to show a small part of one's great ability; literally 'to try a butcher's knife on a small scale'

Definition

A chengyu meaning to display just a sliver of one's real skill on a small task — literally 'testing a butcher's cleaver on something small.' Used modestly, often by the doer, to imply the bigger ability is held back.

idiom
to show a small part of one's great abilityliterally 'to try a butcher's knife on a small scale'

Examples

  • 小试牛刀，。
    Tā zhè cì zhǐ shì xiǎo shì niú dāo, zhēn zhèng de shí lì hái méi zhǎn xiàn chū lái.
    He only showed a small part of his ability this time; his real strength hasn't shown yet.
  • 小试牛刀，。
    Zhè ge xiàng mù duì tā lái shuō zhǐ shì xiǎo shì niú dāo, tā yǐ qián zuò guò gèng dà de.
    This project is just a small try for him; he has done bigger ones before.
  • 小试牛刀，。
    Xīn lái de chú shī zuò le yí dào jiǎn dān de cài xiǎo shì niú dāo, dà jiā dōu jué de hǎo chī.
    The new chef made a simple dish to show a bit of his ability, and everyone thought it was delicious.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

  • 八八bāto divide; to separate
  • 丨丨gǔnsmall object

The shape of 小 comes from three small dots, later elongated into its strokes; the apparent parts 八 and 丨 are a later way of seeing it.

Open 小 →

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 試; 试 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
式
式shì試shì
Same sound today

The traditional form 試 puts 言 beside 式, and 式 gives the sound; the simplified 试 is the form of this character.

Open 试 →

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

牛 is drawn as a bull's head, with two horns and two ears.

Open 牛 →

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

The shape of 刀 comes from a simple picture of a knife.

Open 刀 →

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