invaluable writing; literary masterpiece; each word worth gold
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 4 examplesidiom
each word is worth a thousand pieces of gold; used to praise excellent writing or invaluable literary work
literaryOriginates from the Warring States period when Qin Chancellor Lü Buwei offered a thousand gold pieces to anyone who could add or remove a single character from his work 'Lüshi Chunqiu'. Now used to describe writing of supreme quality where every word is carefully chosen and valuable.
Lǐ李
Bái白
de的
shī诗
gē歌
kān堪
chēng称
yī一
zì字
qiān千
jīn金
，
liú流
chuán传
qiān千
gǔ古
。
Li Bai's poetry can be called priceless, passing down through the ages.
Zhè这
piān篇
wén文
zhāng章
zì字
zì字
zhū珠
jī玑
，
zhēn真
shì是
yī一
zì字
qiān千
jīn金
。
Every word in this article is a gem, truly worth its weight in gold.
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Gǔ古
rén人
xiě写
wén文
zhāng章
jiǎng讲
jiù究
yī一
zì字
qiān千
jīn金
，
bù不
kěn肯
qīng轻
yì易
xià下
bǐ笔
。
Ancient writers valued every word as worth a thousand gold pieces, unwilling to write carelessly.
Zhè这
fú幅
shū书
fǎ法
zuò作
pǐn品
bǐ笔
lì力
qiú遒
jìng劲
，
kě可
wèi谓
yī一
zì字
qiān千
jīn金
。
This calligraphy work has vigorous strokes, truly priceless.