萎缩

• Pinyin: wěi suō
• Hanzi breakdown: 萎 = 艹 + 委 (withered plant, drooping); 缩 = 纟+ 宿 (shrink, contract)

Meaning

To shrink, wither, or atrophy. Used for physical withering of tissue or plants, economic contraction of markets, or decline of an industry.

A versatile term used in biology (肌肉萎缩, muscle atrophy), economics (市场萎缩, market contraction), and botany. Distinguished from 畏缩 (recoiling out of fear) by its physical or structural, non-psychological sense.

Examples

1. 长期卧床导致他的腿部肌肉严重萎缩。 Long-term bed rest caused severe atrophy in his leg muscles.
2. 受全球经济下行影响，出口市场持续萎缩。 Affected by the global economic downturn, the export market has continued to shrink.
3. 干旱使这片农田的庄稼全部萎缩枯死。 The drought caused all the crops in this farmland to wither and die.

Usage Guide

Context: medicine, economics, science

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 长期不运动会导致肌肉逐渐萎缩，影响日常活动能力。(Long-term inactivity causes muscles to gradually atrophy, affecting the ability to carry out daily activities.)
• 国内制造业市场在过去五年中持续萎缩，亟需转型升级。(The domestic manufacturing market has continued to shrink over the past five years and urgently needs transformation and upgrading.)

Don't Say

• 他听到批评就萎缩了 — use 畏缩 when someone flinches or hesitates due to fear or pressure; 萎缩 describes physical or structural shrinkage, not psychological recoiling

Origin & History

萎 (wither, droop) + 缩 (shrink, contract)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal