焦土

jiāotǔ

noun #37,178

Meanings

1 scorched earth
2 devastated land

Characters

burnt / scorched

Examples

战争把这座城市变成了一片焦土。

Zhànzhēng bǎ zhè zuò chéngshì biànchéng le yī piàn jiāotǔ.

The war reduced the city to scorched earth.

敌军实行了焦土政策。

Díjūn shíxíng le jiāotǔ zhèngcè.

The enemy carried out a scorched-earth policy.

Tips

history

The fixed phrase 焦土政策 (jiāotǔ zhèngcè, "scorched-earth policy") refers to a retreating army destroying everything of value so the advancing enemy gains nothing — famously used in WWII narratives about both Russia and China.

Stroke Order

焦 jiāo

土 tǔ