Definition
功亏一篑 is a chengyu (four-character idiom) meaning 'to fail just short of success due to a last missing effort'. The literal image is building a mound of earth and stopping one basketful short of completion — a classic warning against giving up right before the finish line. Use it when someone has done 99% of the work but the final 1% makes it all collapse.
f.e.
to fall short of success for lack of a final effortto fail at the last stretch
Examples
- ，功亏一篑。Tā kǎoshì zhǐ chà yì fēn jiù jígé le, zhēn shì gōng kuī yī kuì.He was just one point away from passing the exam — truly a case of falling short at the last step.
- ，，功亏一篑。Xiàngmù jìnzhǎn shùnlì, dàn zuìhòu yì bǐ zījīn méi dàowèi, zuìzhōng gōng kuī yī kuì.The project was going smoothly, but the last tranche of funding never came through, so it ultimately collapsed right before completion.
- ，功亏一篑。Nǐ yào jiānchí dào zuìhòu, bié yīnwèi yì diǎn kùnnan jiù gōng kuī yī kuì.You need to hold out until the end — don't give up at the last hurdle just because of a small difficulty.
Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.