耗 hào — mouse; new; to waste; to spend; to consume; to squander
这件事耗费了我们很多时间和精力。Zhè jiàn shì hào fèi le wǒ men hěn duō shí jiān hé jīng lì.This matter consumed a lot of our time and energy.
Common words: 消耗 (xiāo hào)、耗费 (hào fèi)、耗时 (hào shí)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "to waste"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "to waste", including 耗 (hào), 糟 (zāo), 糟 (zāo). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "to waste" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 耗 (hào), 糟 (zāo), 糟 (zāo) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span hào, zāo — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 耗 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 耗 hàomouse; new; to waste; to spend; to consume; to squanderUseful words: 消耗, 耗费
- 糟 zāodregs; to waste; spoil; to waste; spoilUseful words: 糟糕, 糟蹋
- 糟 zāodregs; to waste; spoil; to waste; spoilUseful words: 糟糕, 糟蹋
Common words for these 3 "to waste" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 耗 (hào) — so "to waste" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
消耗xiāo hàoto consume; to use up; to deplete; to expend耗费hào fèito waste; to spend; to consume; to squander耗时hào shítime-consuming; to take a period of (x amount of time)糟糕zāo gāotoo bad; how terrible; what bad luck; terrible糟蹋zāo tàto waste; to spoil; to ruin; to wreck乱七八糟luàn qī bā zāo(idiom) chaotic; in disorder; muddled糟糕zāo gāotoo bad; how terrible; what bad luck; terrible糟蹋zāo tàto waste; to spoil; to ruin; to wreck乱七八糟luàn qī bā zāo(idiom) chaotic; in disorder; muddled
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 3 ways to say "to waste".
糟 zāo — dregs; to waste; spoil; to waste; spoil
糟糕，我把作业忘在家里了。Zāo gāo, wǒ bǎ zuò yè wàng zài jiā lǐ le.Oh no, I left my homework at home.
Common words: 糟糕 (zāo gāo)、糟蹋 (zāo tà)、乱七八糟 (luàn qī bā zāo)
糟 zāo — dregs; to waste; spoil; to waste; spoil
糟糕，我把作业忘在家里了。Zāo gāo, wǒ bǎ zuò yè wàng zài jiā lǐ le.Oh no, I left my homework at home.
Common words: 糟糕 (zāo gāo)、糟蹋 (zāo tà)、乱七八糟 (luàn qī bā zāo)
All 3 characters
Open 耗、糟、糟 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.