Chinese word

荒

Pronunciation

Pinyinhuāng

Meaning

  • verbbecome barren

Example

这片土地已经荒了。zhè piàn tǔ dì yǐ jīng huāng le

This land has already become barren.

Illustration for 荒 (become barren)

More examples

停产后，周边的厂房很快就荒废了。tíng chǎn hòu zhōu biān de chǎng fáng hěn kuài jiù huāng fèi le

After production stopped, the surrounding factory buildings quickly fell into disuse.

Core concept

Human neglect turns a functioning piece of land or a building into an empty, overgrown, or broken remnant.

Common phrases

  • 土地荒废tǔ dì huāng fèi

    become barren

  • 厂房荒废chǎng fáng huāng fèi

    fall into disuse

Similar words

荒废huāng fèi: Falls into disrepair after being left without care or use for a long time.
荒芜huāng wú: Grows thick with plants until the land becomes wild and its former appearance disappears.
废弃fèi qì: Is given up and left behind so that it is no longer used.
抛荒pāo huāng: Has its farming or care stopped, leaving the land to become wild and neglected.

Definition in Chinese

变得无人管理或受损，失去原有使用价值，常指土地、房屋等变得破败或荒废。biàn de wú rén guán lǐ huò shòu sǔn shī qù yuán yǒu shǐ yòng jià zhí cháng zhǐ tǔ dì fáng wū děng biàn de pò bài huò huāng fèi

Word origin

荒 (huāng, "become barren") originally referred to wild or uncultivated land, and its verb use presents neglect as a place turning into that state.

Usage tips

  • 荒 (huāng, "become barren") commonly applies to buildings as well as land, while English "barren" usually focuses more narrowly on the ability of land to support growth.

Other meanings

  • fall into ruinverb
  • desolateadjective

Opposites

Related words

Word lists with this word