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糟糕

zāogāo
adjective/interjection HSK 5 #625

Meanings

  1. 1 terrible; awful; too bad
  2. 2 (interjection) oh no! how terrible!

Characters

糟
zāo
rotten; terrible; dregs
糕
gāo
cake; pastry
Like a cake gone bad - something that's turned out terribly.

Examples

HSK 3
糟糕！我迟到了！
Zāogāo! Wǒ chídào le!
Oh no! I'm late!
HSK 4
情况变得越来越糟糕。
Qíngkuàng biàn de yuèláiyuè zāogāo.
The situation is getting worse and worse.
HSK 4
他的心情很糟糕。
Tā de xīnqíng hěn zāogāo.
He's in a terrible mood.

Tips

usage
糟糕 is one of the most common Chinese exclamations. It's milder than cursing - appropriate in any situation, like saying "oh no!" in English.
usage
Intensifiers: 糟糕透了 (absolutely terrible), 太糟糕了 (too terrible). Synonym: 糟 alone works the same way but is shorter.

Stroke Order

糟 zāo
糕 gāo