Chinese word

坏

Pronunciation

Pinyinhuài

Meaning

  • adjectivebad

Example

他的脾气很坏。tā de pí qì hěn huài

His temper is very bad.

Illustration for 坏 (bad)

More examples

水果放久了就会坏。shuí guǒ fàng jiǔ le jiù huì huài

Fruit goes bad if it is kept for too long.

Core concept

A label for something that fails a needed standard, from a person's conduct to an object's condition.

Common phrases

  • 水果坏了shuí guǒ huài le

    go bad

  • 车坏了chē huài le

    break down

Similar words

不好bù hǎo: Describes health, feelings, or events as being in a poor state.
差chà: Describes something as poor in quality or performance and not satisfactory.

Definition in Chinese

用来说明人或事物的品质或状态不好，也可表示物品损坏或变质；作形容词时常与程度副词连用，如“很坏”。yòng lái shuō míng rén huò shì wù de pǐn zhì huò zhuàng tài bù hǎo yě kě biǎo shì wù pǐn sǔn huài huò biàn zhì zuò xíng róng cí shí cháng yǔ chéng dù fù cí lián yòng rú hěn huài

Word origin

坏 (huài, "bad") comes from an older character associated with being damaged, and that physical idea extends naturally to a poor state or quality.

Usage tips

  • When 坏 (huài, "bad") describes a person, it often sounds like a moral label rather than a mild comment that one action causes trouble.

Other meanings

  • brokenadjective
  • rottenadjective

Opposites

Word lists with this word