faa3 seoi2化水
Jyutpingfaa3 seoi2
Yalefa séui
Definition
To melt or dissolve into water, or for ink to bleed and spread on paper.
- to melt, dissolve, or turn into water
- (of ink) to bleed or spread on paper
- figurativeto lose one's possessions; to have something go down the drain
colloquialmoneydescriptions
How it's used
Beyond the literal sense of ink bleeding into paper, this expression is frequently used metaphorically to describe money or assets that disappear unexpectedly. It carries a sense of helplessness, as if the value simply dissolved or evaporated before the owner could do anything about it. It is common to hear it used when someone loses a large sum of money through bad investments or gambling.
Examples
The document got wet and all the characters have blurred into ink.
His entire fortune has vanished into thin air, it is truly miserable.
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with 溶, which is the general verb for melting or dissolving. 化水 is specifically used for the visual effect of ink spreading or the abstract loss of wealth, whereas 溶 is used for physical objects like ice or sugar.
Grammar color guide
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Grammar guides
- 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.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
