九牛一毛
- Literal
- one hair among nine oxen
- Figurative
- A tiny amount within something vast; so small it hardly counts. The equivalent of "a drop in the ocean."
Where does 九牛一毛 come from?
The phrase comes from the famous "Letter to Ren An" by the Han dynasty historian Sima Qian. After defending the general Li Ling, who had surrendered to the Xiongnu, Sima Qian was condemned and suffered the punishment of castration. In the letter he confesses that had he chosen death, his passing would have mattered as little to the powerful as the loss of "one hair among nine oxen," no different from the death of an ant. He chose to live in disgrace so he could finish his great historical work, the 《史记》. From that lament came the image of something trivial set against an immensity.
Source (出处): 司马迁《报任安书》
How is 九牛一毛 used? Two examples
- 对一家大公司来说，这点损失只是九牛一毛。
For a big company, this small loss is just a drop in the ocean.
- 他捐的那点钱，比起他的财产，不过是九牛一毛。
The little money he donated was a mere trifle compared to his fortune.
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