堵塞

• Pinyin: dǔ sè
• Hanzi breakdown: 堵 = 土 (earth radical) + 者 (phonetic); 塞 = compound meaning to stop up or fill a gap

Meaning

To block, clog, or congest a passage or channel. Used for traffic congestion, blocked pipelines, or obstructed communication routes.

Common in traffic (交通堵塞), medical (血管堵塞), and infrastructure contexts. Also used figuratively for obstructed information channels or impeded policy flow. Implies a physical or functional obstruction preventing normal movement.

Examples

1. 由于路面施工，城区主干道连续三天严重堵塞。 Because of road construction, the city’s main thoroughfare has been severely clogged for three straight days.
2. 下水道长期未疏通，导致管道完全堵塞。 The sewer hasn’t been cleared for a long time, causing the pipes to become completely blocked.
3. 信息渠道堵塞使基层情况无法及时反映到管理层。 When information channels are blocked, conditions at the grassroots level can’t be reported to management in time.

Usage Guide

Context: traffic, infrastructure, logistics

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 早高峰期间，市中心主要路口全部堵塞，通行时间延长至平时的三倍。(During the morning rush hour, all major intersections in the city center were completely congested, extending travel time to three times the norm.)
• 技术人员检查后发现，输油管道因异物堵塞导致供油中断。(After inspection, technicians found that the oil pipeline had been blocked by a foreign object, causing a supply interruption.)

Don't Say

• 把嘴堵塞 — for silencing someone use 堵住某人的嘴 or 封住某人的嘴; 堵塞 describes physical or systemic obstruction, not silencing a person

Origin & History

堵 (wall/block) + 塞 (plug/fill)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal