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燕雀安知鸿鹄之志

yàn què ān zhī hóng hú zhī zhì

8-character word Traditional 燕雀安知鴻鵠之志

What 燕雀安知鸿鹄之志 means

1. lit. can the sparrow and swallow know the will of the great swan? (idiom)
2. fig. how can we small fry predict the ambitions of the great?

The characters in 燕雀安知鸿鹄之志

• 燕yànswallow (family Hirundinidae); old variant of 宴
• 雀què(bound form) small bird; sparrow; also pr. qiǎo
• 安ān(bound form) calm; peaceful; to calm; to set at ease; safe; secure; in good health
• 知zhīto know; to be aware
• 鸿hóngeastern bean goose; great; large
• 鹄gǔcenter or bull's eye of an archery target (old); goal; target
• 之zhī(possessive particle, literary equivalent of 的; him; her
• 志zhìaspiration; ambition; the will