羊毛出在羊身上

Traditional form:

羊毛出在羊身上

Pinyin (reading):

yángmáochūzàiyángshēnshàng

Definitions:

• lit. wool comes from the sheep's back (idiom); One gets the benefit, but the price has been paid.
• Nothing comes for free.

Characters:

• 羊 - sheep, goat
• 毛 - hair, fur, feathers; coarse
• 出 - to go out, to send out; stand; produce
• 在 - at, in, on; to exist; used to indicate the present progressive tense
• 羊 - sheep, goat
• 身 - body, torso; person; pregnancy
• 上 - above, on top, superior; to go up; to attend; previous

Traditional characters:

• 羊 - sheep, goat
• 毛 - hair, fur, feathers; coarse
• 出 - to go out, to send out; stand; produce
• 在 - at, in, on; to exist; used to indicate the present progressive tense
• 羊 - sheep, goat
• 身 - body, torso; person; pregnancy
• 上 - above, on top, superior; to go up; to attend; previous