持之以恒 (chí zhī yǐ héng)

Character breakdown

• 持 (chí) · 9 strokes

  Phonosemantic compound. 扌 represents the meaning and 寺 represents the sound.

• 之 (zhī) · 3 strokes

  Pictograph of a foot (止) going out of an area. The current meaning is a phonetic loan.

• 以 (yǐ) · 4 strokes

  Depicts a person (人) carrying something.

• 恒 (Héng) · 9 strokes

  A constant 亘 heart 忄; 亘 also provides the pronunciation

Usage

学习外语需要持之以恒。

to pursue unremittingly (idiom); to persevere

xué xí wài yǔ xū yào chí zhī yǐ héng 。