庸碌

yōnglù
adjective #62,282

Meanings

  1. 1 mediocre
  2. 2 commonplace and unambitious
  3. 3 ordinary and lacking achievement

Examples

Tā bù gānxīn guò yōnglù de yìshēng.
He is unwilling to live a mediocre life.
Yōnglù zhī bèi hěn nán chéngjiù dàshì.
Mediocre people find it hard to accomplish great things.

Tips

register
Literary, slightly negative. Often appears in the reduplicated form 庸碌 (yongyong lulu) for emphasis, or in the fixed phrase 庸碌无能 (yonglu wuneng, 'mediocre and incapable'). Stronger than 普通 (ordinary).
memory
= mediocre/ordinary; = busy with trifles. Together they paint someone who's busy but with nothing meaningful - the Chinese version of 'spinning your wheels.'

Stroke Order

yōng