挥霍 (huī huò) — to squander, to spend wastefully

Definition

挥霍 emphasizes reckless, excessive spending of money or time — stronger than 浪费 ('waste' in general). Often used with 无度 to highlight lack of restraint.

verb
to squanderto spend wastefully

Examples

  • 挥霍。
    Tā huī huò le suǒ yǒu jiā chǎn.
    He squandered all the family assets.
  • 挥霍。
    Bú yào zhè yàng huī huò guāng yīn.
    Don't squander your time like this.
  • 挥霍。
    huī huò Wú dù de rén zuì zhōng huì yì wú suǒ yǒu.
    A person who squanders without limit will end up with nothing.

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.

挥huīscatter
霍huòdisperse

The 挥 (scatter) and 霍 (disperse) senses merge into spending money wildly.

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 揮; 挥 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
軍
軍jūn揮huī
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 揮 pairs 扌 (hand) with 軍 as a sound part; the simplified 挥 is a shorthand, so its right side is not the historical component.

Open 挥 →

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

霍 is built from 雨 (rain) and 隹 (bird).

Open 霍 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Money & Currency

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