捅娄子 (tǒng lóu zǐ) — (colloquial) to make a mess of something, to cause trouble, to blunder
Definition
A colloquial verb meaning to cause trouble or botch something badly (lit. 'poke a hole'). Used for mistakes that create a mess the speaker wants to fix.
verb
(colloquial) to make a mess of somethingto cause troubleto blunder
Examples
- ，捅娄子。Tā zuò shì tài mǎ hu, jīng cháng tǒng lóu zǐ.He is too careless and often makes a mess of things.
- ，。Nǐ zhè cì kě tǒng le gè dà lóu zi, gǎn jǐn xiǎng bàn fǎ bǔ jiù ba.You've really made a big mess this time — hurry up and find a way to fix it.
- ，捅娄子。Bié ràng tā fù zé zhè ge xiàng mù, tā zhī huì tǒng lóu zǐ.Don't let him be in charge of this project — he'll only make a mess.
Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.