Definition
泥沙 literally means 'silt' or 'sediment' — the fine particles carried by water. Figuratively, it appears in the idiom 泥沙俱下 (ní shā jù xià), meaning that good and bad mix together indiscriminately, often referring to a situation where worthless things or people appear alongside valuable ones. Understanding this idiom is key for nuanced Chinese.
n.
siltsediment(figurative) something worthless or of low quality (from the idiom 泥沙俱下)
Examples
- 泥沙，。Zhè tiáo hé lǐ ní shā tài duō, shuǐ hěn húnzhuó.This river has too much sediment, the water is very muddy.
- ，泥沙。Gǎigé kāifàng chūqī, gèzhǒng sīxiǎng ní shā jù xià.In the early days of reform and opening up, all kinds of ideas, good and bad, came flooding in.
- ，泥沙。Zhèxiē zuòpǐn zhìliàng bù yī, ní shā hěn duō.These works vary in quality; there is a lot of worthless stuff.
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