寒酸落魄 — “To be in a state of poverty”

寒酸落魄 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be in a state of poverty”. Destitution, and dejection, often appearing shabby and dispirited due to lack of success or misfortune. Literally, “shabby and down-and-out; impoverished and dejected”.

Frequency

寒酸落魄 Pronunciation and Pinyin

寒酸落魄 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
寒	hán	12	cold, poor, disheartened
酸	suān	14	sour, acid, aching, poignant
落	luò	12	fall, drop, settle, decline
魄	pò	15	vital spirit or soul

Example Sentence with 寒酸落魄

他失业后，整日无精打采，穿着也变得寒酸落魄。

After losing his job, he was listless all day, and his appearance became shabby and dispirited.

Origin and Story of 寒酸落魄

Fan Ju accompanied Xu Jia, a high-ranking official from the State of Wei, on a diplomatic mission to the State of Qi. Xu Jia suspected Fan Ju of secretly colluding with Qi and reported him to the Wei prime minister upon their return. Fan Ju was unjustly beaten and severely injured. He then changed his name to Zhang Lu and fled to the State of Qin, where he eventually became its prime minister.

Later, Xu Jia was sent on a diplomatic mission to Qin. Fan Ju, disguised as a shabby and dejected poor man, went to meet him. Xu Jia, seeing his miserable state, kindly gave him a silk robe.

However, when Xu Jia later discovered that this 'poor man' was none other than the Qin Prime Minister, he was utterly terrified and repeatedly apologized for his past actions. Fan Ju, however, chose not to harm him.