消磨 xiāomó to wear down
to wear down; to sap; to whittle away; to while away; to idle away
How to remember 消磨: 消 vanish + 磨 millstone = to wear down.
Characters
How it is used
- Two senses: to wear down (will/energy) - 消磨意志 (xiāomó yìzhì) to erode one's willpower; and to while away - 消磨时间 (xiāomó shíjiān) to kill time.
- For time it means passing idle hours; for spirit it means gradually grinding something away.
- The image is slow attrition (磨 = grind), so it fits things that fade bit by bit.
Example sentences
- 我试着消磨时间。 Wǒshì zhe xiāomó shíjiān.I was trying to kill time.