小洞不补大洞吃苦 in English xiao3 dong4 bu4 bu3 da4 dong4 chi1 ku3 Meaning

Meanings

  • A small hole not plugged will make you suffer a big hole (idiomatic expression); a stitch in time saves nine

Simplified Characters

小 洞 不 补 大 洞 吃 苦

Traditional Characters

小 洞 不 補 大 洞 吃 苦

Pinyin

xiao3 dong4 bu4 bu3 da4 dong4 chi1 ku3

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

小xiao3small 洞dong4cave 不bu4(negative prefix) 补bu3to repair 大da4big 洞dong4cave 吃chi1to eat 苦ku3bitter