洗劫一空

xǐjié-yīkōng

idiom #21,396

Meanings

1 to loot completely
2 to ransack and leave nothing behind
3 to clean out (a place)

Characters

to wash / to clean out

to plunder / rob

one / completely

empty / nothing left

Examples

小偷趁主人外出，把家里洗劫一空。

Xiǎotōu chèn zhǔrén wàichū, bǎ jiālǐ xǐjiéyīkōng.

The thief took advantage of the owner's absence and cleaned out the house completely.

战争结束后，整个城市几乎被洗劫一空。

Zhànzhēng jiéshù hòu, zhěnggè chéngshì jīhū bèi xǐjiéyīkōng.

After the war ended, the entire city had been almost completely looted.

Tips

memory

Think of 洗 (wash) + 劫 (plunder) + 一空 (until empty) — to wash and plunder until nothing remains. The metaphor of washing away everything makes the totality vivid.

Stroke Order

洗 xǐ

劫 jié

一 yī

空 kōng