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寒酸 (hán suān) — shabby, miserable, poverty-stricken (in appearance or living conditions); stingy, unpresentable (of gifts, expenses, or behavior)

Definition

Describes someone who looks shabby or whose gifts/actions seem unpresentable — covers both 'poverty-stricken appearance' and 'stingy, cheap' in one word. Stronger and more contemptuous than just 旧 ('worn-out').

adjective
shabbymiserablepoverty-stricken (in appearance or living conditions)stingyunpresentable (of gifts, expenses, or behavior)

Examples

  • 寒酸，。
    Tā chuān dé nà me hán suān, yí kàn jiù zhī dào shēng huó bù róng yì.
    He dresses so shabbily — you can tell at a glance that life is not easy for him.
  • 寒酸，。
    Tā sòng de lǐ wù tài hán suān le, ràng rén jué de tā hěn xiǎo qì.
    The gift she gave was too stingy; it made people think she is very cheap.
  • 寒酸，。
    Zhè jiān wū zi suī rán yǒu diǎn hán suān, dàn zhù zhe hěn wēn xīn.
    Although this room is a bit shabby, it is very cozy to live in.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

寒háncold/shabby
酸suānsour/shabby

寒酸 joins 寒 and 酸, both suggesting coldness and sourness, to describe a shabby or stingy look.

Characters in this word

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

  • 宀宀miánhouse
  • 人人rénperson
  • 茻茻mǎnggrass

寒 shows 宀 (house), 人 (person), and 茻 (grass): a person sleeping in grass inside a house to keep out the cold.

Open 寒 →

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
酉酉yǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
夋
夋qūn酸suān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

酸 is built from 酉 and 夋, and 夋 gives the sound.

Open 酸 →
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