搜刮

sōuguā

verb #27,589

Meanings

1 to rake in (money)
2 to plunder
3 to exploit
4 to extort
5 to milk dry

Characters

to search; to seek out

to scrape; to fleece; to blow (of wind)

Examples

HSK 4

他们把村子里的粮食搜刮一空。

Tāmen bǎ cūnzi lǐ de liángshi sōuguā yīkōng.

They plundered all the food in the village.

HSK 7-9

贪官搜刮了大量民脂民膏。

Tānguān sōuguā le dàliàng mínzhī-míngāo.

The corrupt official plundered vast amounts of public wealth.

Tips

usage

搜刮 has a strongly negative connotation - it implies forceful, greedy extraction of wealth from others, especially by those in power. Not used in neutral contexts.

Stroke Order

搜 sōu

刮 guā