劣 liè low-quality
low-quality; inferior; bad
How to remember 劣: 少 few + 力 power = low-quality. The cheap drill has few settings and so little power that the builder throws it back, calling it low-quality.
Component breakdown
劣 = 少 few + 力 power
- 少 few
- 力 power
The cheap drill has few settings and so little power that the builder throws it back, calling it low-quality.
How it is used
- Bound morpheme for 'inferior, low-quality' - 劣质产品 (lièzhì chǎnpǐn) shoddy goods, 劣势 (lièshì) disadvantage.
- The standard antonym of 优 (yōu, superior): the pair 优/劣 splits good vs bad, as in 优胜劣汰 (yōushèng-liètài) survival of the fittest.
- 恶劣 (èliè) applies to weather, conditions, or behavior that is downright vile - stronger than plain 'bad'.