The character is often used in literary descriptions of fading beauty or decline.
In Chinese poetry, 凋 commonly describes flowers withering in autumn, symbolizing impermanence.

Related characters:


to wither, to dry up

to decline, to weaken, to withe

to fall, to drop, to let fall

ice, oil, to congeal/freeze

 — semantic component meaning “ice” or “cold;”


all around, complete, thorough

 — phonetic component indicating the sound (조 / diāo).
The imagery suggests plants losing vitality due to cold or harsh conditions, leading to the meaning to wither or fade.

Semantic development:
- plants withering or fading;
- loss of vitality;
- decline or deterioration (figurative).
The meaning expanded from natural withering to general decline or decay.

조락 (凋落) — withering and falling; decline
조폐 (凋弊) — decay; deterioration

Characters

Words

Vocabulary

grievance, injustice, wrongful suffering, resentment

dark, obscure, netherworld, the underworld

winter, the end of the year

smelting, forge, refined, alluring

cold, cool, chill

to extinguish, to vanish, to die out, to disappear

bleak, desolate, lonely, chilly, cold

to allow, to grant, to conform, to be accurate, to be standard

to wither, to fade, to decline

to freeze, to be cold

cold, severe, dignified, stern and upright

to coagulate, to congeal, to solidify, to freeze

all, in general, ordinary, common

female phoenix, the yin counterpart of 鳳 (male phoenix)

triumph, victorious return, song of victory

ominous, unfortunate, evil, bad, cruel

convex, protruding, raised

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Chinese character

Explore 214 Chinese radicals and their derived characters. Sort by radical or stroke count, and view the complete list of official Hanja radicals.

Chinese characters (Hanja)

Chinese characters dictionary

凋

Etymology

Usage in Korean

Additional notes

Neighboring characters in the dictionary