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民生凋敝

Mandarin · pinyin mín shēng diāo bì

the people's livelihood is reduced to destitution (idiom); a time of famine and impoverishment

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Characters in this entry

民: mín · people, subjects, citizens
生: shēng · life, living, lifetime; birth
凋: diāo · be withered, fallen; exhausted
敝: bì · break, destroy; broken, tattered

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Mandarin tones

2–1–1–4 · min2 sheng1 diao1 bi4

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