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恶化 (è huà) — to worsen, to deteriorate

Definition

恶化 (èhuà) means 'to worsen/deteriorate', typically used for situations, conditions, or relationships going bad. Unlike 变质, it is not used for food spoiling; it describes ongoing decline in abstract contexts.

verb
to worsento deteriorate

Examples

  • 恶化。
    Bìng rén de bìng qíng tū rán è huà le.
    The patient's condition suddenly worsened.
  • 恶化。
    Liǎng guó guān xì chí xù è huà.
    The relations between the two countries are continuously deteriorating.
  • ，恶化。
    Rú guǒ bù cǎi qǔ cuò shī, huán jìng hái huì jì xù è huà.
    If no measures are taken, the environment will continue to deteriorate.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

恶èbad/evil
化huàturn into

恶 gives the sense of badness, and 化 adds the idea of turning into that state.

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 惡; 恶 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
亞
亞yā惡è
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 惡 pairs 心 (heart) as the meaning part with 亞 (yā) as the sound part; the simplified 恶 is a later shorthand.

Open 恶 →

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

化 shows two person figures, one upright and one upside down, to give the idea of reversal or change.

Open 化 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Change & Process

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