Chinese idiom · 成语
千虑一得
Meaning
Even an unwise person's many thoughts may contain a useful insight; a modest way of offering one's own suggestion.
Character by character
Origin and story
Classical sayingThe underlying saying appears in the Yanzi Chunqiu: even a wise person's many considerations may include an error, and even a foolish person's may contain something worthwhile. The thousand is rhetorical, not a calculation of how often people are right. The point is to leave room for useful advice from someone who lacks prestige or claims little ability.
The shortened form is documented in the History of the Southern Dynasties, in the biography of Yu Li, where Yu Ji humbly asks to present a proposal despite his age and illness. It consequently became a modest way to introduce one's own small contribution, not a boast about persistence.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
这只是我的千虑一得，是否可行，还请大家讨论。
This is only my modest suggestion; please discuss whether it is workable.
A formal, self-deprecating introduction to an opinion.