七零八

qīlíngbā
phrase #33,570

Meanings

  1. 1 (fragment) 'seven-zero-eight' - the opening of idioms like 七零八落 (scattered, in disarray) or 七零八碎 (bits and pieces)

Examples

HSK 5
Wū lǐ de dōngxi bèi fān de qīlíngbāluò.
The things in the room had been turned upside down - everything scattered.
HSK 7-9
Zhuō shàng bǎi zhe yìxiē qīlíngbā suì de xiǎowányìr.
On the table were a few odds and ends - bits and pieces of trinkets.

Tips

usage
七零八 doesn't stand alone - it's the first three syllables of fixed four-character expressions, almost always 七零八落 (qī líng bā luò, 'scattered all over') or 七零八碎 (qī líng bā suì, 'bits and pieces / odds and ends'). When you see 七零八 in text, look for the closing character.
memory
The numbers 七 'seven' and 八 'eight' are used together in many Chinese idioms to mean 'all over the place' - see also 乱七八糟 (luàn-qī-bā-zāo, 'all in a mess'). Treat 七…八… as a frame for chaos.

Stroke Order

七 qī
零 líng
八 bā