The New Dictionary.
Search dictionary
Chinese/Dictionary entry

差之毫厘，失之千里

chā zhī háo lí , shī zhī qiān lǐdictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
the slightest difference leads to a huge loss (idiom) / a miss is as good as a mile
Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-20c45a19e6bc4481. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

差之毫釐，失之千里 差之毫厘，失之千里 [cha1 zhi1 hao2 li2 , shi1 zhi1 qian1 li3] /the slightest difference leads to a huge loss (idiom)/a miss is as good as a mile/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

Other forms in these source records: 差之毫釐，失之千里

  • 差
    chā

    difference / discrepancy / (math.) difference (amount remaining after a subtraction) / (literary) a little / somewhat / slightly

    chà

    different / wrong / mistaken / to fall short / to lack / not up to standard / inferior / Taiwan pr. [chā]

    chāi

    to send (on an errand) / (archaic) person sent on such an errand / job / official post

    cī

    used in 參差|参差[cēn cī]

  • 之
    zhī

    (possessive particle, literary equivalent of 的[de]) / him / her / it

  • 毫
    háo

    hair / drawing brush / (in the) least / one thousandth / currency unit, 0.1 yuan

  • 厘
    lí

    one hundredth / centi-

    Lí

    Li (c. 2000 BC), sixth of the legendary Flame Emperors 炎帝[Yán dì] descended from Shennong 神農|神农[Shén nóng] Farmer God, also known as Ai 哀[Āi]

  • 失
    shī

    to lose / to miss / to fail

  • 之
    zhī

    (possessive particle, literary equivalent of 的[de]) / him / her / it

  • 千
    qiān

    thousand / used in 鞦韆|秋千[qiū qiān]

  • 里
    lǐ

    lining / interior / inside / internal / also written 裏|里[lǐ] / li, ancient measure of length, approx. 500 m / neighborhood / ancient administrative unit of 25 families / (Tw) borough, administrative unit between the township 鎮|镇[zhèn] and neighborhood 鄰|邻[lín] levels

    Lǐ

    surname Li

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.