TongTong
Sign in

充斥 (chōng chì) — to be flooded with; to be full of (of undesirable things)

Definition

充斥 means 'flooded with' — almost always negative (rumors, garbage, errors). Unlike 充满, it carries an unpleasant, overloaded sense; 洋溢 is its positive counterpart for emotions/atmosphere.

verb
to be flooded withto be full of (of undesirable things)

Examples

  • 充斥。
    Zhè ge dì qū chōng chì zhe lā jī.
    This area is full of garbage.
  • 充斥。
    Tā de wén zhāng chōng chì zhe cuò wù.
    His article is full of mistakes.
  • 充斥。
    Wǎng luò shàng chōng chì zhe yáo yán.
    The internet is flooded with rumors.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

充chōngfill
斥chìspread

充 (fill) and 斥 (spread) together describe being filled or flooded with unwanted things.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 𠫓𠫓𠫓a newborn
  • 儿儿érstanding person

充 pairs 𠫓, a newborn, with 儿, a standing person, to picture a newborn growing to stand.

Open 充 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
广广guǎngbuilding
Sound part声符shēngfú
屰
屰nì斥chì
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

An older form paired 广 (building) with 屰 (sound part); 斥 developed from that shape.

Open 斥 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Abstract Concepts

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.