心灰意冷

xīnhuī-yìlěng

idiom #29,802

Meanings

屡次失败让他心灰意冷。

Lǚcì shībài ràng tā xīnhuīyìlěng.

Repeated failures left him completely discouraged.

她对这段感情心灰意冷，决定离开。

Tā duì zhè duàn gǎnqíng xīnhuīyìlěng, juédìng líkāi.

She became disillusioned with the relationship and decided to leave.

memory

灰 means ash (grey, cold) and 冷 means cold. When your heart turns to ash and your will goes cold — that is 心灰意冷. The temperature metaphor is powerful.

心 xīn

灰 huī

意 yì

冷 lěng