yī​yè​zhī​qiū

a straw in the wind

Senses

一叶知秋/ 一葉知秋 yī​yè​zhī​qiū (also yí​yè​zhī​qiū) a straw in the wind

literally meaning the falling of one leaf heralds the coming of autumn, this idiom describes how a small sign or subtle change can indicate a significant trend or the development of a situation

References

synonym 因小见大/因小見大 一叶知秋/一葉知秋
synonym 叶落知秋/葉落知秋 一叶知秋/一葉知秋