蹉跎

Chinese

		error; slip; miss error; slip; miss; err
trad. (蹉跎)		蹉	跎
simp. #(蹉跎)		蹉	跎

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): cuōtuó

  (Zhuyin): ㄘㄨㄛ ㄊㄨㄛˊ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): co¹ to⁴
• Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): chho-tô

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: cuōtuó
    • Zhuyin: ㄘㄨㄛ ㄊㄨㄛˊ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: cuotuó
    • Wade–Giles: tsʻo¹-tʻo²
    • Yale: tswō-twó
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: tsuotwo
    • Palladius: цото (coto)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰu̯ɔ⁵⁵ tʰu̯ɔ³⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: co¹ to⁴
    • Yale: chō tòh
    • Cantonese Pinyin: tso¹ to⁴
    • Guangdong Romanization: co¹ to⁴
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰɔː⁵⁵ tʰɔː²¹/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: chho-tô
    • Tâi-lô: tsho-tô
    • Phofsit Daibuun: zhoi'dooi
    • IPA (Xiamen): /t͡sʰo⁴⁴⁻²² to²⁴/

---

• Middle Chinese: tsha da

Rime
Character	蹉	跎
Reading #	1/1	1/1
Initial (聲)	清 (14)	定 (7)
Final (韻)	歌 (94)	歌 (94)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open
Division (等)	I	I
Fanqie	七何切	徒河切
Baxter	tsha	da
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/t͡sʰɑ/	/dɑ/
Pan Wuyun	/t͡sʰɑ/	/dɑ/
Shao Rongfen	/t͡sʰɑ/	/dɑ/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/t͡sʰa/	/da/
Li Rong	/t͡sʰɑ/	/dɑ/
Wang Li	/t͡sʰɑ/	/dɑ/
Bernhard Karlgren	/t͡sʰɑ/	/dʱɑ/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	cuō	tuó
Expected Cantonese Reflex	co1	to4

• Old Chinese

  (Zhengzhang): /*sʰlaːl  l'aːl/

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	蹉	跎
Reading #	1/1	1/1
No.	18008	12219
Phonetic component	左	它
Rime group	歌	歌
Rime subdivision	1	1
Corresponding MC rime	蹉	駝
Old Chinese	/*sʰlaːl/	/*l'aːl/
Notes	古作差池

Verb

蹉跎

1. (literary) to slip and fall; to miss one's step

   • 夫賢聖歿而大義分，蹉跎殊趨，各自開門。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     夫贤圣殁而大义分，蹉跎殊趋，各自开门。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Wang Chong, Lun Heng (Discussive Weighing), 80 CE

     Fú xiánshèng mò ér dàyì fēn, cuōtuó shū qū, gèzì kāimén. [Pinyin]

     The worthies and sages are dead, and their great doctrine has split up. Many new roads have been struck out, on which many people have stumbled.

2. (literary) to miss an opportunity
3. (literary) to decline; to deteriorate; to degenerate
4. (literary) to be frustrated; to be disheartened; to be disappointed
5. to idle away the time; to waste time

Derived terms

• 年已蹉跎
• 日月蹉跎
• 歲月蹉跎 / 岁月蹉跎
• 蹉跎仕路
• 蹉跎日月
• 蹉跎時日 / 蹉跎时日
• 蹉跎歲月 / 蹉跎岁月 (cuōtuó suìyuè)
• 蹉跎自誤 / 蹉跎自误

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (蹉跎):

• → Japanese: 蹉跎(さだ) (sada)