流失

• Pinyin: liú shī
• Hanzi breakdown: 流 = 氵+ 㐬 (flow away); 失 = to lose, hand releasing something

Meaning

To drain away; to be lost or depleted. Used for the irreversible loss of resources, talent, or water.

Frequently used for brain drain (人才流失), erosion of water (水土流失), or loss of users/customers. Carries a negative, often irreversible connotation and is widely used in policy and business discourse.

Examples

1. 由于待遇偏低，公司近年来出现了严重的人才流失问题，核心团队几近瓦解。 Because pay is relatively low, the company has faced severe talent loss in recent years, and the core team has nearly fallen apart.
2. 山坡植被遭到破坏后，大量水土开始流失，引发了严重的滑坡隐患。 After the vegetation on the hillside was damaged, large amounts of soil and water began to wash away, creating a serious landslide risk.
3. 平台改版后，大量老用户因体验下降而流失，运营团队面临巨大压力。 After the platform redesign, many longtime users left due to a worse experience, putting the operations team under enormous pressure.

Usage Guide

Context: business, environment, policy

Tone: negative

Do Say

• 如何留住人才、防止人才流失，是许多企业管理层面临的重大挑战。(How to retain talent and prevent brain drain is a major challenge for management in many companies.)
• 该地区连年干旱，加之植被稀少，水土流失问题日益严峻。(This region faces perennial drought and sparse vegetation, making soil and water loss increasingly severe.)

Don't Say

• 将流失与损失混用 — 流失 emphasises a gradual and often irreversible leakage, while 损失 is a broader term for any type of loss (Don't swap 流失 with 损失 — 流失 is about gradual, irreversible depletion)

Origin & History

流 (to flow away) + 失 (to lose)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal