颓丧 (tuí sàng) — dispirited, dejected, listless (from disappointment or failure)

Definition

A literary/formal word for the dejected, listless mood after a setback. Stronger and more written than common 沮丧, and bleaker than 失望 (which only means 'disappointed').

adjective
dispiriteddejectedlistless (from disappointment or failure)

Examples

  • 颓丧，。
    Tā zuì jìn hěn tuí sàng, yīn wèi gōng zuò yì zhí bú shùn lì.
    He's been very dispirited lately because work has been going badly.
  • ，颓丧。
    Shī bài zhī hòu, tā yì liǎn tuí sàng de biǎo qíng.
    After the failure, she wore a look of dejection on her face.
  • 颓丧，。
    Kàn dào dà jiā zhè me tuí sàng, duì zhǎng gǔ lì wǒ men bú yào fàng qì.
    Seeing everyone so dispirited, the team leader encouraged us not to give up.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

颓tuíwilted decline
丧sàngloss of spirit

颓 suggests wilted decline and 丧 suggests loss of spirit, giving a sense of dejection.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 颓 →

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 喪; 丧 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
㗊㗊㗊many mouths
Sound part声符shēngfú
桑
桑sāng喪sàng
Same sound today

The traditional form 喪 originally paired 桑 (mulberry tree) with 㗊 (many mouths). The simplified 丧 is the modern form, deriving from a form that used 哭 (cry) and 亡 (die).

Open 丧 →

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