蚍蜉撼树 — Chinese idiom

Meaning

• (lit.) an ant trying to shake a tree
• (fig.) to overrate oneself; to overestimate one's capabilities

Character by character

• 蚍pímussels, shellfish
• 蜉fúwasp; mayfly; large ant
• 撼hànto incite, to move, to shake
• 树shùtree; to plant; to set up, to establish

Idioms sharing a character

• 别树一帜 bié shù yī zhì
• 别树一旗 bié shù yī qí
• 树上开花 shù shàng kāi huā
• 树大招风 shù dà zhāo fēng
• 树碑立传 shù bēi lì zhuàn
• 独树一帜 dú shù yī zhì
• 独树一格 dú shù yī gé
• 百年树人 bǎi nián shù rén
• 绿树成荫 lǜ shù chéng yīn
• 芝兰玉树 zhī lán yù shù

Data: CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0); Unihan Database (Unicode License v3). Retrieved 2026-10-22.