san4 toi4 gat1神台桔

Jyutpingsan4 toi4 gat1

Yalesàhn tòih gāt

Definition

To let something or someone decline through neglect or inaction; to allow to dry out and wither.

colloquialother

How it's used

This expression draws a vivid image of a clementine left on a home altar, which slowly shrivels up in the quiet, dark corner of a room. It is used to describe anything from a business or a project to a person's skills that are left to deteriorate because nobody is paying attention to them. It carries a sense of passive decay rather than active destruction.

Examples

gaan1間pou3舖tau2頭mou5冇jan4人lei5理，zan1真hai6係bin3變zo2咗san4神toi2台gat1桔laa3喇。

The shop is completely neglected, it has really gone to seed.

nei5你zoi3再m4唔heoi3去gan1跟zeon3進，go3個gai3計waak6劃ci4遲zou2早bin3變san4神toi4台gat1桔㗎zaa3咋。

If you don't follow up, the project will eventually wither away from neglect.

Related words

synonymjam1 gon1陰乾yām gōn

Common phrases

bin3變san4神toi2台gat1桔

to wither away from neglect

Common mistake

Do not use this to describe something that is being actively destroyed or sabotaged. It specifically implies a state of being ignored or left alone to wither, similar to the concept of being left on the shelf.