稀烂 (xī làn) — smashed to pieces; in a terrible state; (fig.)… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A vivid result complement meaning 'smashed to bits' or 'messed up completely' — stronger and more colloquial than 烂 alone. Pairs with 得 (de) after a verb to describe the resulting state (e.g. 摔得稀烂, 搞得稀烂).

verb

smashed to piecesin a terrible state(fig.) thoroughly messed up

Examples

稀烂。
Tā bù xiǎo xīn bǎ shǒu jī shuāi dé xī làn.
He accidentally dropped his phone and smashed it to pieces.
稀烂。
Zhè dǔ qiáng bèi chē zhuàng dé xī làn.
This wall was smashed to bits by the car.
稀烂，。
Tā bǎ zhěng gè xiàng mù gǎo dé xī làn, méi rén xiǎng jiē shǒu.
He totally messed up the whole project; no one wants to take it over.

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.

烂lànmashed/broken down

“稀” means very and “烂” means mashed or broken down, so it describes something smashed to pieces.

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.

禾希稀

Meaning part形符xíngfú

禾禾hégrain

Sound part声符shēngfú

希

Same sound today

稀 has 禾 (grain) beside 希, and 希 gives the character its sound.

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 爛; 烂 is its simplified writing.

火闌爛

Meaning part形符xíngfú

火火huǒfire

Sound part声符shēngfú

闌

闌lán爛làn

Same sound today

The form 爛 pairs 火 (fire) with 闌 as the sound part; this explains 爛, not the simplified 烂.

Appears in

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