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Chinese/Dictionary entry

喝凉水都塞牙

hē liáng shuǐ dōu sāi yádictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
(coll.) to be out of luck
Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-58555d057ec450af. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

喝涼水都塞牙 喝凉水都塞牙 [he1 liang2 shui3 dou1 sai1 ya2] /(coll.) to be out of luck/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

Other forms in these source records: 喝涼水都塞牙

  • 喝
    hē

    to drink

    hè

    to shout

  • 凉
    liáng

    cool / cold

    liàng

    to let sth cool down

    Liáng

    the five Liang of the Sixteen Kingdoms, namely: Former Liang 前涼|前凉 (314-376), Later Liang 後涼|后凉 (386-403), Northern Liang 北涼|北凉 (398-439), Southern Liang 南涼|南凉[Nán Liáng] (397-414), Western Liang 西涼|西凉 (400-421)

  • 水
    shuǐ

    water / (after a name) ... River / to swim (used mostly in 會水|会水[huì shuǐ] and 水性[shuǐ xìng]) / (coll.) lacking in substance / shoddy / (bound form) additional cost / extra income / classifier for washings of a garment

    Shuǐ

    surname Shui / Shui ethnic group

  • 都
    dōu

    all / both / entirely / (used for emphasis) even / already / (not) at all

    dū

    capital city / metropolis

    Dū

    surname Du

  • 塞
    sāi

    to plug / to stop up / to stuff in / (bound form) a stopper / a cork

    sài

    (bound form) strategic stronghold

    sè

    (bound form) to block / to obstruct

  • 牙
    yá

    tooth / ivory / CL:顆|颗[kē]

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.