染上

rǎnshàng

verb #14,522

Meanings

1 to catch (a disease)
2 to pick up (a bad habit)

Characters

to dye; to contaminate

resultative complement (indicates acquisition)

Examples

他染上了重感冒。

Tā rǎnshàng le zhòng gǎnmào.

He caught a bad cold.

千万别染上赌博的习惯。

Qiānwàn bié rǎnshàng dǔbó de xíguàn.

Whatever you do, don't pick up a gambling habit.

Tips

usage

染上 always implies something negative — diseases, bad habits, or addictions. You wouldn't use it for catching good habits. The base verb 染 means 'to dye/contaminate', so 染上 carries a sense of being tainted.

Stroke Order

染 rǎn

上 shàng