📖 Meaning
It means advancing on multiple fronts at the same time. The idiom is most often used to describe several tasks, projects, or lines of work being carried out simultaneously rather than one after the other. It emphasizes parallel progress across multiple efforts.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase is a relatively modern Chinese expression rather than one drawn from ancient classical texts. It is commonly associated with Premier Zhou Enlai's speech at the Shanghai Science and Technology Work Conference, where he described the main requirements for modernizing science and technology as 'seeking truth from facts, advancing step by step, advancing on all fronts simultaneously, and catching up.' Since then, the expression has become widely used in political, economic, and managerial discourse in China.
💡 Example Usage
这家公司采取研发与营销齐头并进的策略，迅速打开了市场。
The company adopted a strategy of advancing research and development side by side with marketing, quickly opening up the market.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 齐头并进
- Pinyin: qí tóu bìng jìn
- Literal Translation: equal, head, together, advance
- Category: Method
- Characters: 4