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吃亏 (chī kuī) — to suffer losses, to be at a disadvantage; to come to grief, to get the worst of it

Definition

吃亏 means 'to suffer losses / be at a disadvantage,' used broadly in life, deals, and relationships. Unlike 亏损 (financial deficit) or 亏本 (selling at a loss), 吃亏 is everyday and not limited to business.

verb
to suffer lossesto be at a disadvantageto come to griefto get the worst of it

Examples

  • ，吃亏。
    Tā tài lǎo shi, zǒng shì chī kuī.
    He is too honest and always suffers losses.
  • 。
    Zhè cì hé zuò wǒ men chī le yí gè dà kuī.
    We suffered a big loss in this cooperation.
  • 吃亏。
    Zuò shēng yi yǒu shí hou pà chī kuī jiù zuò bù chéng.
    In business, sometimes if you're afraid of being at a disadvantage, you won't succeed.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

吃chīsuffer/take
亏kuīloss

“吃” suggests suffering or taking, and “亏” denotes loss, giving the sense of suffering a loss.

Characters in this word

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
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
乞
乞qǐ吃chī
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

吃 combines 口 (mouth) with 乞, which gives the sound; it originally wrote a word meaning to stutter.

Open 吃 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 虧; 亏 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亏亏kuīexhale
Sound part声符shēngfú
雐
雐hū虧kuī
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 虧 pairs 雐, a sound part, with 亏, a part meaning exhale. The simplified 亏 is a later abbreviation.

Open 亏 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 5Success & Failure

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