急功近利 (jí gōng jìn lì)

Character breakdown

• 急 (jí) · 9 strokes

  Phonosemantic compound. 心 represents the meaning and 及 represents the sound.

• 功 (gōng) · 5 strokes

  Phonosemantic compound. 力 represents the meaning and 工 represents the sound.

• 近 (jìn) · 7 strokes

  Phonosemantic compound. 辶 represents the meaning and 斤 represents the sound.

• 利 (Lì) · 7 strokes

  Depicts harvesting grain (禾) with a blade (刂). Harvest was the main source of profit in agricultural societies.

Usage

做学问不能急功近利。

seeking instant benefit (idiom); shortsighted vision, looking only for fast return

zuò xué wèn bù néng jí gōng jìn lì 。