Meaning of 破坏
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- destruction
- damage
- to wreck
- to break
- to destroy
How to use 破坏
破坏 is a fairly formal verb used for damaging things, environments, rules, relationships or plans, and it can also act as a noun meaning destruction. Example: 不要破坏环境。(Bú yào pòhuài huánjìng.) Do not damage the environment.
破 (pò) has the stone radical 石, so picture a rock cracking something open, and 坏 (huài) means bad or broken, as in 坏人 (huàirén). Breaking something until it goes bad is 破坏, to destroy or damage.
Common mistake: Learners often use 破坏 for everyday small breakages, like a broken cup, where Chinese usually says 打破 (dǎpò) or 弄坏 (nònghuài). Also keep the fourth tones on both syllables, pò and huài, and do not read 坏 as the third tone.
破坏 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
破 pò · broken · 10 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
坏 huài · bad · 7 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
Related words
Words that share a character with 破坏.
| 坏人 | huàirén | bad person; villain |
| 坏处 | huàichù | harm; troubles |
| 打破 | dǎpò | to break; to smash |
| 破产 | pòchǎn | to go bankrupt; to become impoverished |
| 突破 | tūpò | to break through; to make a breakthrough |
| 坏事 | huàishì | bad thing; misdeed; to ruin things |
| 破解 | pòjiě | to break (a bond, constraint etc); to explain |
| 损坏 | sǔnhuài | to damage; to injure |
| 破碎 | pòsuì | to smash to pieces; to shatter |
| 破裂 | pòliè | to burst; to rupture; (of a relationship etc) to break down |
| 破案 | pò'àn | to solve a criminal case |
| 毁坏 | huǐhuài | to damage; to devastate |
Questions about 破坏
What does 破坏 mean?
破坏 (pòhuài) means "destruction; damage" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 破坏?
破坏 is made of 2 characters: 破 (10 strokes), 坏 (7 strokes). That is 17 strokes in total.
Is 破坏 an HSK word?
Yes. 破坏 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 破坏 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 破坏 is written 破壞.
What is the difference between 破坏 and 坏?
坏 (huài) alone is usually an adjective meaning bad or broken, as in 手机坏了 (shǒujī huài le), the phone is broken. 破坏 is an action verb meaning to cause damage, often on purpose or on a larger scale.
Can 破坏 be used for abstract things?
Yes. It is common with abstract objects, for example 破坏关系 (pòhuài guānxi), to damage a relationship, or 破坏规矩 (pòhuài guīju), to break the rules.