Chinese word

翻车

Pronunciation

Pinyinfān chē

Meaning

  • verbroll over

Example

他开车时翻车了。tā kāi chē shí fān chē le

The car rolled over while he was driving.

Illustration for 翻车 (roll over)

More examples

昨天晚上一辆货车在高速上翻车了。zuó tiān wǎn shàng yí liàng huò chē zài gāo sù shàng fān chē le

A truck rolled over on the highway last night.

Core concept

A sudden overturning that turns smooth progress into a serious mishap, whether on the road or in a wider situation.

Common phrases

  • 在弯道上翻车zài wān dào shàng fān chē

    roll over on a curve

  • 高速公路上翻车gāo sù gōng lù shàng fān chē

    roll over on the highway

  • 车辆翻车chē liàng fān chē

    a vehicle rolls over

Similar words

侧翻cè fān: Turn onto one side and end up with that side on the ground.
翻倒fān dǎo: Tip over suddenly because of force or momentum.
失败shī bài: Fail to achieve the expected result.
出错chū cuò: Have a mistake or problem arise during a process or action.

Definition in Chinese

原义为车辆翻倒，现也常用作比喻，表示某事或某人出现重大失误或陷入窘境。yuán yì wèi chē liàng fān dǎo xiàn yě cháng yòng zuò bǐ yù biǎo shì mǒu shì huò mǒu rén chū xiàn zhòng dà shī wù huò xiàn rù jiǒng jìng

Word origin

The compound 翻 (fān, "turn over") + 车 (chē, "vehicle") names the physical event of a vehicle rolling over before developing a broader sense for a major setback.

Usage tips

  • The word can describe a person as well as an event, especially when an action leaves the person in an embarrassing situation, so it is broader than an ordinary word for a road accident.

Other meanings

  • have an accidentverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word