糟

zāo

曹 + 米

HSK 3.0Level 5

Definitions

zāo (noun) dregs; waste from fermentation

zāo (adjective) pickled; fermented

zāo (adjective) messy; ruined

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 米 represents the meaning and 曹 represents the sound.

Semantic: 米 Phonetic: 曹

About

The character 糟 is a phono-semantic compound, formed from the semantic radical 米 (rice or grain) and the phonetic component 曹. Its original meaning refers to the dregs or sediment left after brewing alcohol from fermented grain. Since these dregs are considered waste, the character’s sense broadened to describe things as rotten, spoiled, or in a terrible state. In modern usage, it often conveys dismay, characterizing a situation as a complete mess, disastrous, or of very poor quality.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

这太糟糕了。

Zhè tài zāogāo le.

This is too bad.

我的心情很糟糕。

Wǒ de xīnqíng hěn zāogāo.

My mood is very bad.

不要糟蹋食物。

Bùyào zāotà shíwù.

Don't waste food.

这件事做得糟糕。

Zhè jiàn shì zuò dé zāogāo.

This thing was done poorly.

他把房间弄得一团糟。

Tā bǎ fángjiān nòng dé yī tuán zāo.

He made the room a mess.

由于管理不善，公司状况很糟。

Yóuyú guǎnlǐ bù shàn, gōngsī zhuàngkuàng hěn zāo.

Due to poor management, the company's situation is bad.

这些糟木头不能用了。

Zhèxiē zāo mùtou bù néng yòng le.

These rotten woods cannot be used.

虽然计划一开始就很糟，但我们没有放弃，最终成功了。

Suīrán jìhuà yī kāishǐ jiù hěn zāo, dàn wǒmen méiyǒu fàngqì, zuìzhōng chénggōng le.

Although the plan was bad from the start, we did not give up and eventually succeeded.

Related Characters

Component: 曹

Component: 米

糟