聚沙成塔

jùshā-chéngtǎ
idiom #87,865

Meanings

  1. 1 grains of sand piled into a pagoda
  2. 2 many small efforts add up to something great
  3. 3 little by little

Examples

HSK 4
Měitiān cún yìdiǎn, jùshā-chéngtǎ.
Save a little every day. Grains of sand make a pagoda.
HSK 7-9
Císhàn kào de jiùshì jùshā-chéngtǎ de lìliàng.
Charity runs on the power of small contributions adding up.

Tips

history
From the Lotus Sutra (《妙法莲华经·方便品》), where even a child piling sand into a stupa in play counts as a Buddhist merit. The phrase became a general metaphor for accumulation.
usage
Frequently paired with 集腋成裘 (gathering fur scraps into a coat) in the same sentence, reinforcing the same idea.

Stroke Order

聚 jù
沙 shā
成 chéng
塔 tǎ