諺語 · a single proverb
勤能補拙
Simplified: 勤能补拙
What does 勤能補拙 (qín néng bǔ zhuō) mean?
勤能補拙 (qín néng bǔ zhuō) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "diligence can mend clumsiness." In use it means: Hard work compensates for a lack of natural talent. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Earth note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Ox.
Literally: "diligence can mend clumsiness."
The reading
You were not the quickest in the room; you have known that a long time. But quickness spends itself early, and the one who keeps returning to the work, clumsy and unhurried, ends up holding what the gifted let slip. Effort is the talent no one is born without.
The story
The maxim is associated with the Tang poet Bai Juyi and carried forward through later Song usage; its exact locus is debated, but the teaching is plain and old: diligence can mend clumsiness. Quickness spends itself early, while the one who keeps returning to the work, unhurried, ends up holding what the gifted let slip.
If you were not the quickest in the room, make effort your talent instead, the one no one is born without. Keep returning to the work when the naturals have wandered off, and let steadiness quietly overtake speed.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Associated with Bai Juyi 白居易 (Tang); popularized via 邵雍 and later usage; classical idiom, exact locus debated
Sits beside
Keep reading
Return to the Proverb Pond to draw another of the eighty-seven, or hear one read aloud. Read the rest of its chapter in Wealth, Work & Diligence, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Ox, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Horse.
Questions
Is 勤能補拙 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 勤能補拙 (qín néng bǔ zhuō) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from Associated with Bai Juyi 白居易 (Tang); popularized via 邵雍 and later usage; classical idiom, exact locus debated. It is living Chinese heritage, given here with per-character pinyin and its source so you can trust the line, not a phrase invented in English.
How do you pronounce 勤能補拙?
In Mandarin it is qín néng bǔ zhuō. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 勤能補拙 aloud in Mandarin.