燕雀焉知鴻鵠之志

燕雀焉知鸿鹄之志
yànquèyānzhīhónggǔzhīzhì
lit. can the sparrow and swallow know the will of the great swan? (idiom); fig. how can we small fry predict the ambitions of the great?

CEDICT

Entry Composition

1 燕雀 yànquè
  1. (bird species of China) brambling (Fringilla montifringilla)
  2. (fig.) small fry
2 焉知 yānzhī (literary) how is one to know?
3 鴻鵠之志 hónghúzhīzhì
  1. (figurative) the ambitions of a great person
  2. the ambitions of a great person