Chinese word

故障

Pronunciation

Pinyingù zhàng

Meaning

  • verbbreak down

Example

电梯突然故障，我们被卡在里面。diàn tī tū rán gù zhàng wǒ men bèi kǎ zài lǐ miàn

The elevator suddenly broke down, and we got stuck inside.

Illustration for 故障 (break down)

More examples

开会时投影仪突然出故障，无法继续演示。kāi huì shí tóu yǐng yí tū rán chū gù zhàng wú fǎ jì xù yǎn shì

During the meeting, the projector suddenly breaks down, so we cannot continue the presentation.

Core concept

A fault obstructs a machine or system's normal operation, causing work to stop or become less effective.

Common phrases

  • 电梯出故障diàn tī chū gù zhàng

    elevator breaks down

  • 设备出故障shè bèi chū gù zhàng

    equipment breaks down

  • 系统出故障xì tǒng chū gù zhàng

    system breaks down

Similar words

坏huài: Breaks so that normal use becomes difficult or impossible.
损坏sǔn huài: Sustains damage that lowers performance or makes normal use impossible.
失灵shī líng: A machine or system's function fails, so it does not operate properly.
出问题chū wèn tí: A problem arises and keeps a thing or device from working as intended.

Definition in Chinese

设备或系统出现功能异常，不能按预期运行，导致工作中断或性能下降。shè bèi huò xì tǒng chū xiàn gōng néng yì cháng bù néng àn yù qī yùn xíng dǎo zhì gōng zuò zhōng duàn huò xìng néng xià jiàng

Word origin

故 (gù, "reason or problem") + 障 (zhàng, "obstruction") frames a cause of trouble as something that blocks proper functioning.

Usage tips

  • The affected device or system commonly serves as the subject, making this word useful for reporting a problem without naming a person responsible.

Other meanings

  • breakdownnoun
  • defectnoun

Opposites

Related words

  • 故障率gù zhàng lǜfailure ratenoun
  • 故障诊断gù zhàng zhěn duànfault diagnosisnoun
  • 故障排除gù zhàng pái chútroubleshootingnoun

Word lists with this word