天壤之别 world of difference
Explanation
形容两者之间差别极大，如同天地之间一样。
describes the huge difference between two things, as big as the difference between heaven and earth.
Origin Story
话说古代有两户人家，一户富甲一方，家中田地无数，仆人成群，每日锦衣玉食；另一户却家徒四壁，每日为温饱而奔波。两家孩子同在一个村子里上学，富家子弟穿着绫罗绸缎，吃着山珍海味，而穷人家的孩子衣衫褴褛，每日只吃粗茶淡饭。有一天，富家子弟看到穷孩子衣衫褴褛的样子，便嘲笑他说："你的衣服怎么这么破旧？"穷孩子低着头，不好意思地说："我们家很穷，没有钱买新衣服。"富家子弟听到后，更加得意洋洋地说："我家可不一样，我们家什么都有！"穷孩子默默地听着，心里酸楚无比。他暗自下定决心，要努力学习，将来改变自己的命运。这个故事告诉我们，贫富差距确实存在，但只要努力，我们就能改变自己的命运。
Once upon a time, in ancient China, there were two families. One was extremely wealthy, owning countless acres of land and many servants, enjoying a life of luxury. The other was impoverished, struggling daily to make ends meet. Their children attended the same village school. The wealthy child wore fine silk and ate delicacies, while the poor child wore ragged clothes and ate simple meals. One day, the wealthy child saw the poor child's tattered clothes and mocked him, "Why are your clothes so old?" The poor child hung his head and shyly replied, "My family is poor, we can't afford new clothes." The wealthy child, even more smug, boasted, "My family is different; we have everything!" The poor child listened silently, his heart heavy. He secretly resolved to study hard and change his fate one day. This story shows us that while the gap between rich and poor exists, with effort, we can change our destiny.
Usage
用于形容两者差别极大。
Used to describe a huge difference between two things.
Examples
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他们的生活水平，简直是天壤之别。
tāmen de shēnghuó shuǐpíng, jiǎnzhí shì tiānrǎng zhī bié
Their living standards are worlds apart.
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这两种方案，简直是天壤之别。
zhè liǎng zhǒng fāng'àn, jiǎnzhí shì tiānrǎng zhī bié
These two plans are worlds apart.