The Chinese word 泡汤 is a vivid idiomatic expression formed through metaphorical extension: the character 泡 means "to soak" or "to steep," while 汤 means "soup" or "hot water," so the literal image is of something being submerged or dissolving in broth. Figuratively, it evokes the sense of a solid plan or substantial effort melting away, becoming diluted and worthless, much like an object left to disintegrate in hot liquid. Thus, it came to mean a plan that has fallen through, hopes that have been dashed, or efforts that have come to nothing, commonly used in informal contexts to describe failures or cancellations.