bing1 sin2兵燹
Jyutpingbing1 sin2
Yalebīng sín
Definition
The ravages of war; destruction and damage caused by warfare.
writtenother
How it's used
This is a highly formal, literary term rooted in classical Chinese that is rarely used in everyday spoken Cantonese. It combines the characters for soldiers and fire to evoke the total destruction caused by military conflict. You will primarily encounter it in historical accounts, formal literature, or news reports discussing war zones.
Examples
This place went through the ravages of war, many houses were gone.
During wartime, the ravages of war caused many people to be displaced.
Related words
Common phrases
to suffer greatly from the ravages of war
Common mistake
Do not attempt to use this in casual conversation, as it will sound extremely unnatural and pretentious. For everyday speech, use 戰亂 or 打仗 instead.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- Aspect markersCantonese has no tenses, but it does have aspect markers. Learn how zo2, gwo3, gan2, and hai2 dou6 show completion, experience, and ongoing action.
- In 30 secondsThe whole language at a glance. No tenses, no plurals, six tones, sentence particles. Read this before you dive into any specific topic.
- ParticlesSentence particles add tone, emotion, and nuance. Learn the most common particles in Cantonese and how to use them.
