坏

• Pinyin: huài
• Hanzi breakdown: 坏 = 土 (earth) + 不 (phonetic component) — things falling apart or going bad

Meaning

Bad; broken; spoiled. Describes something negative in quality or condition.

Used to describe bad character (坏人 = bad person), broken items (电脑坏了 = computer is broken), spoiled food (水果坏了), or bad weather. The opposite is 好 (good). Very common in everyday descriptions of things going wrong.

Examples

1. 这个手机坏了。 This phone is broken.
2. 他不是坏人。 He is not a bad person.
3. 天气太坏了，不能出去。 The weather is too bad, we can't go out.

Usage Guide

Context: everyday, descriptions

Tone: negative

Do Say

• 我的自行车坏了。(My bicycle is broken.)
• 这个主意不坏。(This idea isn't bad.)

Don't Say

• 今天很坏。(Too vague — specify what is bad: 今天天气很坏 or 今天运气很坏)

Origin & History

Contains 土 (earth) on the left and a phonetic component on the right. The association with earth suggests things crumbling or falling apart.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal