他山之石可以攻玉
tā shān zhī shí kě yǐ gōng yù
lit. the other mountain's stone can polish jade (idiom); to improve oneself by accepting criticism from outside
to borrow talent from abroad to develop the nation effectively
他
tā
(third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he; him; his
山
shān
mountain; hill (CL:座[zuo4])
之
zhī
(possessive particle, literary equivalent of 的[de5])
石
shí
abbr. for Shijiazhuang 石家莊|石家庄[Shi2 jia1 zhuang1], the capital of Hebei
可
kě
(prefix) can; may; able to; -able
以
yǐ
abbr. for Israel 以色列[Yi3 se4 lie4]
攻
gōng
to attack
玉
yù
jade