烂死蛇

爛死蛇
lànsǐshé
idiom

Meanings

  1. 1 a rotten dead snake (fig.)
  2. 2 an intractable burden one can't shake off
  3. 3 a clinging nuisance

Examples

HSK 7-9
Zhè zhuāng guānsi xiàng lànsǐshé yíyàng chán zhe tā, jǐ nián dōu tuō bu kāi.
The lawsuit clings to him like a rotten dead snake, years on, still can't shake it.
HSK 7-9
Nà bǐ zhài chéng le tā jiā de lànsǐshé.
That debt became a dead weight around his family's neck.

Tips

memory
Picture a rotting snake wound around your leg, dead but still stuck to you, stinking and impossible to throw off. The image captures the inescapable quality of the burden.

Stroke Order

烂 làn
死 sǐ
蛇 shé