刀不磨要生锈，人不学要落后

dāo bù mó yào shēng xiù , rén bù xué yào luò hòu

(proverb) a blade will get rusty if it is not sharpened; a man will fall behind if he doesn't study

刀

dāo

knife; blade; single-edged sword; cutlass (CL:把[ba3])

不

bù

no; not so

磨

mó

to rub

要

yào

to want; to need; to ask for

生

shēng

to be born

锈

xiù

to rust

，

人

rén

person; people

不

bù

no; not so

学

xué

to learn

要

yào

to want; to need; to ask for

落

luò

to fall or drop

后

hòu

back