蝇头小利 (yíng tóu xiǎo lì) — a pittance; a trifling profit; a very small (often contemptible) gain

Definition

A chengyu meaning 'a tiny, contemptible profit' — literally 'fly-head-sized gain.' It carries a moralizing tone, warning against chasing small gains at the cost of larger interests or principles.

idiom
a pittancea trifling profita very small (often contemptible) gain

Examples

  • 蝇头小利，。
    Tā wèi le zhè diǎn yíng tóu xiǎo lì, bù xī sǔn hài gōng sī de cháng yuǎn lì yì.
    He didn't hesitate to harm the company's long-term interests for this petty gain.
  • 蝇头小利，。
    Shāng rén zhī kàn zhòng yíng tóu xiǎo lì, hěn nán bǎ shēng yì zuò dà.
    If a businessman only cares about small profits, it's hard to grow the business.
  • 蝇头小利。
    Bié wèi le yì diǎn yíng tóu xiǎo lì jiù fàng qì yuán zé.
    Don't abandon your principles for a trifling profit.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

蝇头fly's head
蝇yíngfly头tóuhead
偏正Modifier + head
小利small profit
小xiǎosmall利lìprofit
偏正Modifier + head

蝇头 (fly's head) and 小利 (small profit) picture a gain as tiny as a fly's head.

Characters in this word

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 蠅; 蝇 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
虫虫chónginsect
Sound part声符shēngfú
黽
黽mǐn蠅yíng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

蝇 is the simplified form of 蠅, which pairs 虫 (insect) with 黽 as a sound part.

Open 蝇 →

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 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu頭tóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.

Open 头 →

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 →

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

利 combines 禾 (grain) and 刀 (knife), showing a knife used to cut grain.

Open 利 →

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