三个臭皮匠，顶个诸葛亮 in English san1 ge4 chou4 pi2 jiang5 , ding3 ge4 Zhu1 ge3 Liang4 Meaning

Meanings

  • literally (word for word) three ignorant cobblers add up to a genius (idiomatic expression); metaphorically collective wisdom
  • wisdom of the masses exceeds that of any individual

Simplified Characters

三 个 臭 皮 匠 ， 顶 个 诸 葛 亮

Traditional Characters

三 個 臭 皮 匠 ， 頂 個 諸 葛 亮

Pinyin

san1 ge4 chou4 pi2 jiang5 , ding3 ge4 Zhu1 ge3 Liang4

Literal

Literal explanation, with pronunciation and meaning of each character.

三san1surname San 个ge4individual 臭chou4stench 皮pi2surname Pi 匠jiang4craftsman ， 顶ding3apex 个ge4individual 诸zhu1surname Zhu 葛ge2surname Ge 亮liang4bright