风口上的一盏灯,说灭就灭風口上的一盞燈,說滅就滅風口上的一盞燈,説滅就滅

a lamp in a draughty gap: it goes out as soon as you say so

Saying俗语俗語

Two-part saying歇后语歇後語 · Rarely used now

Meaning: Said of a seriously ill or frail elderly person who could die at any moment.
Wordplay: 灭 (miè) means a lamp goes out literally and a person dies or perishes figuratively.

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Simplified: 风口上的一盏灯,说灭就灭
Traditional (Taiwan): 風口上的一盞燈,說滅就滅
Traditional (Hong Kong): 風口上的一盞燈,説滅就滅
Pinyin: fēngkǒu shàng de yìzhǎn dēng,shuō miè jiù miè
Bopomofo: ㄈㄥㄎㄡˇ ㄕㄤˋ ˙ㄉㄜㄧˋ ㄓㄢˇ ㄉㄥ,ㄕㄨㄛㄇㄧㄝˋ ㄐㄧㄡˋ ㄇㄧㄝˋ

Written with HSK 6 vocabulary, at CEFR level B2.

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