About
The character "颓", whose traditional form is "頹", originally conveyed a concrete sense of physical collapse or decay, as seen in its composition which combines the phonetic element "禿" (bald) with the radical "頁" (head), suggesting an image of something crumbling from the top down. Over centuries, its meaning expanded from describing literal ruin, such as a deteriorating building or a collapsing slope, into more abstract domains, denoting a state of decline, decay, or downfall, often with a moral or societal dimension. This semantic broadening eventually settled into its predominant modern usage, where it describes a personal or spiritual condition of dejection, listlessness, and a loss of vigor, moving from an external state of ruin to an internal one of dispiritedness. The simplified form, by replacing the complex "頁" with "页", streamlined the character while preserving its essential structure and the conceptual link to the head or top, reflecting a continued association with a downward trajectory or loss of integrity.
Example Sentences Hide
他最近很颓废。
不要总是这么颓丧。
公司业绩呈现颓势。
失败后他变得颓然。
这座城市显得有些颓败。
面对困难,他并未颓唐。
长期的颓废生活损害健康。
经济颓靡不振令人担忧。