瘪三 (biēsān): bum

Meanings

1 bum
2 derelict
3 scoundrel
4 wretch who lives by begging or petty crime

Characters

瘪

biē

shriveled / deflated / flat

三

sān

three (idiomatic filler, no independent meaning here)

Examples

别理那个瘪三，他净说些没用的。

Bié lǐ nà gè biēsān, tā jìng shuō xiē méi yòng de.

Don't bother with that bum — he only talks nonsense.

以前老上海街头有不少瘪三。

Yǐqián lǎo Shànghǎi jiētóu yǒu bù shǎo biēsān.

In the old days, the streets of Shanghai had quite a few derelicts.

Tips

culture

瘪三 originated in Shanghainese Wu dialect (likely from the English 'bum' or related slang) and entered Mandarin through Shanghai's cultural influence. It describes a raggedly thin, penniless person living by begging or petty theft. The term is derogatory and carries a strong regional Shanghai flavor.