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拖欠 (tuō qiàn) — to be in arrears, to default on a debt (payment)

Definition

拖欠 (tuōqiàn) means being behind on money owed — salaries, rent, loans — more specific than 拖延, which simply means to delay or procrastinate in general.

verb
to be in arrearsto default on a debt (payment)

Examples

  • 。
    Zhè jiā gōng sī yǐ jīng tuō qiàn yuán gōng sān gè yuè gōng zī le.
    This company has been in arrears on employee salaries for three months.
  • 。
    Tā yīn wèi tuō qiàn fáng zū bèi fáng dōng gǎn le chū lái.
    He was kicked out by the landlord for being behind on rent.
  • 。
    Zhèng fǔ yán lì dǎ jī tuō qiàn nóng mín gōng gōng zī de xíng wéi.
    The government cracks down on the practice of defaulting on migrant workers' wages.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

拖tuōdelay
欠qiànowe

拖 gives delaying and 欠 gives owing, meaning to fall behind in payments.

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
手手shǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
它
它tā拖tuō
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

拖 uses 手 to show an action done with the hand, and 它 to give its sound.

Open 拖 →

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

欠 is a kneeling person with an open mouth, shown in actions such as begging, speaking, blowing, singing, or being tired.

Open 欠 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Finance & Banking

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