Chinese word

庸俗

Pronunciation

Pinyinyōng sú

Meaning

  • adjectivevulgar

Example

庸俗的内容不适合孩子。yōng sú de nèi róng bú shì hé hái zi

Vulgar content is not suitable for children.

Illustration for 庸俗 (vulgar)

More examples

电视节目为了吸引眼球，常采用庸俗的手法。diàn shì jié mù wèi le xī yǐn yǎn qiú cháng cǎi yòng yōng sú de shóu fǎ

To attract attention, television programs often use vulgar methods.

Core concept

Something familiar and ordinary slips into poor taste, with little originality and an unpleasantly cheap effect.

Common phrases

  • 庸俗的作品yōng sú de zuò pǐn

    vulgar works

  • 带有庸俗色彩dài yǒu yōng sú sè cǎi

    have vulgar overtones

  • 庸俗的装饰yōng sú de zhuāng shì

    vulgar decoration

Similar words

低俗dī sú: Coarse and lacking refinement or good taste.
低级dī jí: Low-grade, crude, and weak in intellectual or artistic quality.
俗气sú qì: Tacky and cheap-looking because of an overreliance on popular fashion or taste.
粗俗cū sú: Coarse and lacking refinement in language or behavior.

Definition in Chinese

表示缺乏新意且带有粗俗或下流特点，常用于批评艺术作品、言辞或表达方式。biǎo shì quē fá xīn yì qiě dài yǒu cū sú huò xià liú tè diǎn cháng yòng yú pī píng yì shù zuò pǐn yán cí huò biǎo dá fāng shì

Word origin

The word 庸俗 (yōngsú, "vulgar") joins 庸 (yōng, "mediocre") for a lack of distinction with 俗 (sú, "common"), giving the idea of commonness that falls below good taste.

Usage tips

  • The adjective can evaluate creative work, language, or presentation, not only a person's manners, so context often identifies the target.

Other meanings

  • coarseadjective
  • tawdryadjective
  • triteadjective

Opposites

Related words

  • 庸俗主义yōng sú zhǔ yìvulgarismnoun
  • 庸俗化yōng sú huàvulgarizeverb

Word lists with this word