屑 (xiè) - fragment, crumb & worthless, trivial

屑Tone 4

xiè ｜ 10 strokes ｜ radical:

想信

屑 · xiè

fragment, crumb;

worthless, trivial;

to consider something not worth doing;

to disdain.

fragment, crumbworthless, trivialto consider something not worth doing

Usage highlights

Bread crumbsWood shavingsIron filingsTo disdainTrivial mattersScraps

Synonyms

  • 碎— broken, fragmentary
  • 末— end, powder, trivial
  • 琐— trivial, petty

Antonyms

  • 珍— treasure, valuable
  • 贵— precious, noble
  • 重— important, weighty

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • The bread left many crumbs (面包屑).
  • He disdained to do such trivial work (不屑).
  • Wood shavings covered the floor (木屑).
  • It's not worth mentioning (不值得一提的琐屑之事).

Collocations

  • Bread crumbs(面包屑)
  • Wood shavings(木屑)
  • Iron filings(铁屑)
  • To disdain(不屑)
  • Trivial matters(琐屑)
  • Scraps(碎屑)

Idioms

  • To consider it beneath one's dignity(不屑一顾)
  • Not worth arguing about(不屑置辩)
  • Trifling and of no importance(琐屑不堪)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • Originally referred to small fragments or scraps, later extended metaphorically to mean trivial or worthless things.
  • In classical Chinese, '不屑' expresses strong disdain, implying something is unworthy of one's attention or effort.
  • The character reflects a cultural value of distinguishing between what is substantial/important and what is trivial/worthless.

FAQ