万丈高楼平地起

Traditional form:

萬丈高樓平地起

Pinyin (reading):

wànzhànggāolóupíngdìqǐ

Definitions:

• towering buildings are built up from the ground (idiom)
• great oaks from little acorns grow

Characters:

• 万 - ten thousand; innumerable
• 丈 - gentleman, man, husband; unit of length equal to 3.3 meters
• 高 - tall, lofty; high, elevated
• 楼 - multi-story building; floor
• 平 - flat, level, even; peaceful
• 地 - earth, ground, soil; land, region; structural particle used before a verb
• 起 - to begin, to initiate; to rise, to stand up

Traditional characters:

• 萬 - ten thousand; innumerable
• 丈 - gentleman, man, husband; unit of length equal to 3.3 meters
• 高 - tall, lofty; high, elevated
• 樓 - multi-story building; floor
• 平 - flat, level, even; peaceful
• 地 - earth, ground, soil; land, region; structural particle used before a verb
• 起 - to begin, to initiate; to rise, to stand up