中流砥柱

zhōng liú dǐ zhù

a rock in midstream; the mainstay in hard times

Character by character

中zhōng
middle

流liú
current

砥dǐ
whetstone

柱zhù
pillar

这几位老员工是公司的中流砥柱。

These veteran staff are the backbone of the company.

Tone: positive (praise).

砥柱 is a rock in the Yellow River at 三门峡 in 河南 that the torrent never moved. A favourite of news and speeches.

Learn this in Lesson 9 · HSK 5: 山河与名胜 (Mountains, rivers and landmarks)

A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.