溃

潰

kuì

verb #22,919

Meanings

1 to collapse
2 to be routed
3 to be defeated
4 (of a dyke) to burst

Characters

to collapse / to burst

Examples

敌军全线溃败。

Díjūn quánxiàn kuì bài.

The enemy army collapsed along the entire front.

堤坝溃决，洪水涌入农田。

Dība kuì jué, hóngshuǐ yǒng rù nóngtián.

The embankment burst and floodwater rushed into the farmland.

Tips

usage

溃 often appears in compound words: 溃败 (to be routed), 溃散 (to scatter in defeat), 溃烂 (to fester). As a single character it reads as literary/formal.

Stroke Order

溃 kuì