TongTong
Sign in

破裂 (pò liè) — (of objects) to burst, to rupture; (of relationships, negotiations, etc.) to break down, to fall apart

Definition

破裂 covers both physical bursting (pipes, glass) and figurative breakdown of relationships or talks. For ships or talks stalling prefer 搁浅; for hard materials fracturing prefer 断裂.

verb
(of objects) to burstto rupture(of relationships, negotiations, etc.) to break downto fall apart

Examples

  • 破裂。
    Shuǐ guǎn yīn wèi jié bīng ér pò liè le.
    The water pipe burst because it froze.
  • ，破裂。
    Jīng guò duō cì tán pàn shī bài, shuāng fāng guān xì chè dǐ pò liè.
    After multiple failed negotiations, the relationship between the two sides completely broke down.
  • 破裂。
    Zhè ge bō li bēi diào zài dì shàng pò liè le.
    This glass cup fell on the ground and shattered.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

破pòbreak
裂lièsplit

The sense of 破, breaking, is paired with 裂, splitting, to mean rupture or burst apart.

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
石石shí
Sound part声符shēngfú
皮
皮pí破pò
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

破 has 石 (stone) as its meaning part and 皮 as its sound part.

Open 破 →

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
衣衣yīclothes
Sound part声符shēngfú
列
列liè裂liè
Same sound today

裂 combines 衣 (clothes) with 列 for the sound. The picture of 列 shows bones cut by a blade and lined up, and the whole writes the idea of cutting and tearing clothes.

Open 裂 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9

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