亏了 (kuī le) — fortunately, thanks to (indicating relief that a bad situation was avoided)

Definition

亏了 (kuī le) is an adverb meaning 'fortunately / thanks to' — used to express relief that a bad outcome was avoided. The following clause is typically a positive outcome (∼…，不然… / 否则… pattern).

adverb
fortunatelythanks to (indicating relief that a bad situation was avoided)

Examples

  • 亏了，。
    kuī le Nǐ tí xǐng le wǒ, bù rán wǒ jiù wàng le.
    Fortunately, you reminded me, otherwise I would have forgotten.
  • 亏了，。
    kuī le Dài le sǎn, bù rán jiù lín shī le.
    It's a good thing I brought an umbrella, otherwise I would have gotten soaked.
  • 亏了，。
    kuī le Tā zài chǎng, wèn tí cái jiě jué le.
    Thanks to his presence, the problem was resolved.

Origin

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.

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 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

了 was once drawn to show a baby with no arms; some old comments say it showed crossed or tangled legs.

Open 了 →

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