King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Chinese symbol for “tattered”

破烂
pò làn
Traditional: 破爛
worn-out; dilapidated; tattered; ragged; (coll.) rubbish; junk

The closest CC-CEDICT match for tattered is 破烂 (pò làn), defined as: worn-out; dilapidated; tattered; ragged; (coll.) rubbish; junk.

Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.

Characters and stroke order

破 pò
to break, to rout; to ruin, to destroy
radical 112 ⽯ · 10 strokes
烂 làn
overcooked, overripe; rotten, spoiled
radical 86 ⽕ · 9 strokes

Traditional forms

Other Chinese words for “tattered”

WordPinyinMeaning
凋敝diāo bìimpoverished; destitute

Related words

Other words that share a character with 破烂.

WordPinyinMeaning
破坏 (破壞)pò huàidestruction; damage
突破tū pòto break through; to make a breakthrough
打破dǎ pòto break; to smash
破产 (破產)pò chǎnto go bankrupt; to become impoverished
破解pò jiěto break (a bond, constraint etc); to explain
破裂pò lièto burst; to rupture; (of a relationship etc) to break down
灿烂 (燦爛)càn lànto glitter; brilliant
腐烂 (腐爛)fǔ lànto rot; to putrefy

See also: Japanese symbol for “tattered”.

Data: CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0); Unihan Database (Unicode License v3); Make Me a Hanzi (Arphic Public License (graphics.txt); LGPL-3.0-or-later (dictionary.txt)); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.

Last posts

  1. Are Cold Steel Training Swords Good for Practice
  2. Shinai Maintenance and Essential Tools for Bamboo Care
  3. Best Shinai for Kendo Beginners Choosing Your First Sword
  4. Choosing the Best Bokken for Kendo Kata
  5. Using a Tsuba on Your Bokken for Partner Practice
  6. How Much Should You Spend on a Wooden Practice Sword
  7. How Long Should a Bokken Be for Your Height
  8. Red Oak vs White Oak for Bokken Which Wood Wins
  9. Best Bokken for Beginners: Choosing Your First Training Sword
  10. Best Escrima Sticks for Students Choosing Your First Pair