Definition
走下坡路 literally means 'to walk on a downhill path', but it's a fixed phrase used metaphorically to mean 'to go downhill, to be on the decline, to go from bad to worse'. It is a separable verb (离合词): you can insert 了, 过, or other elements between 走 and 下坡路 to indicate tense or aspect, e.g., 走了下坡路 ('has gone downhill').
v.o.
to go downhillto be on the declineto go from bad to worse
Examples
- 走下坡路。Zhè jiā gōngsī zuìjìn jǐ nián yìzhí zài zǒu xià pō lù.This company has been going downhill in recent years.
- ，。Tā de shìyè zǒu le xià pō lù, zài yě huí bú dào cóngqián le.His career has gone downhill and can never return to what it was.
- ，走下坡路。Zìcóng huàn le lǐngdǎo, zhège xiàngmù jiù kāishǐ zǒu xià pō lù le.Since the leadership changed, this project has started going downhill.
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