qiān
zhī
,
kuì
xué

idiom
proverb

Meaning of 千里之堤,溃于蚁穴

千里之堤,溃于蚁穴 means a small leak will sink a great ship; a small problem can lead to a great disaster. Pronounced qiān lǐ zhī dī , kuì yú yǐ xué.

  • a small leak will sink a great ship; a small problem can lead to a great disaster

Definitions & Examples

Xìn
ān
quán
cóng
xiǎo
chù
zhuó
shǒu
 
qiān
zhī
 
kuì
xué
 
ruò
néng
dǎo
zhì
zhěng
tǒng
bēng
kuì
 

Information security must start with small details; a small leak will sink a great ship, a weak password could cause the entire system to crash.

Gōng
cái
guǎn
dìng
yào
yán
jǐn
 
qiān
zhī
 
kuì
xué
 
xiǎo
xiǎo
de
zhàng
cuò
lěi
duō
le
huì
biàn
chéng
de
cái
lóng窿
 

The company's financial management must be rigorous; a small leak will sink a great ship, small accounting errors that accumulate can turn into a huge financial hole.

Duì
jiàn
kāng
guǎn
 
yào
shì
qīng
wēi
de
zhèng
zhuàng
 
qiān
zhī
 
kuì
xué
 
xiǎo
bìng
zhì
néng
yǐn
bìng
 

For health management, don't ignore minor symptoms; a small leak will sink a great ship, a minor illness left untreated may lead to a serious disease.