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失之毫釐，差以千里

简失之毫厘，差以千里 · 繁失之毫釐，差以千里

Mandarin · pinyin shī zhī háo lí , chà yǐ qiān lǐ

a tiny lapse can lead to a huge mistake (idiom); a minor discrepancy leading to enormous losses

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Characters in this entry

失: shī · lose; make mistake, neglect
之: zhī · marks preceding phrase as modifier of following phrase; it, him her, them; go to
毫: háo · fine hair; measure of length
釐: xī · lí · manage, control; thousandth part of tael
差: chà · chā · to differ; different, wrong; nearly, almost; an officer
以: yǐ · by means of; thereby, therefore; consider as; in order to
千: qiān · thousand; many, numerous; very; (Cant.) a cheater, swindler
里: lǐ · unit of distance; village; lane; Kangxi radical 166
厘: lí · manage, control; thousandth part of tael

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