Hi, I am Helen Zhang, a professional Chinese language teacher from eChineseonline.
“勤 (qín)” means “勤奋 (qínfèn), work hard or diligent.”
能(néng) means “能够 (nénggòu)，can.”
补 (bǔ) means “弥补 (míbǔ)to make up.”
拙 (zhuó) means “笨拙 (bènzhuō) not clever, inaptitude.”
勤能补拙(qín néng bǔ zhuó) can be translated into:
Hard work can often make up for a lack of intelligence.