暴跌 (bào dié) — to slump, to fall steeply (in prices, stocks, etc.)

Definition

A dramatic, sudden fall in price or value — stronger and sharper than 下降 or 下跌. Usually collocates with 股价, 房价, 价格, etc.

verb
to slumpto fall steeply (in prices, stocks, etc.)

Examples

  • 暴跌。
    Zuó tiān gǔ shì bào dié le.
    The stock market slumped yesterday.
  • 暴跌。
    Jìn nián lái fáng jià bào dié.
    House prices have slumped in recent years.
  • 暴跌。
    Zhè zhǒng shāng pǐn de jià gé bào dié le yí bàn.
    The price of this product has fallen by half.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

暴bàosudden
跌diēfall

暴 adds sudden violence to 跌, giving a steep fall.

Characters in this word

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

The earliest form paired 虎 and 戈, a tiger and a weapon. The later 暴 came from a picture of hands drying something in the sun.

Open 暴 →

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
足足zúfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
失
失shī跌diē
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

跌 pairs 足 (foot) with 失, which gives a hint to its sound.

Open 跌 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.