cūxīn dàyì: 粗心大意 - Careless, Negligent, Scatterbrained

• Keywords: cuxin dayi, cūxīn dàyì, 粗心大意, careless Chinese, negligent in Chinese, scatterbrained, inattentive, Chinese idiom for mistakes, how to say careless in Chinese.
• Summary: Learn the essential Chinese idiom 粗心大意 (cūxīn dàyì), meaning “careless,” “negligent,” or “scatterbrained.” This page breaks down the characters, explores the cultural importance of being meticulous, and provides ten practical example sentences. Understand the difference between being 粗心大意 (cūxīn dàyì) and accidentally making a mistake (不小心, bù xiǎoxīn), and see how this common term is used by parents, teachers, and bosses across China to describe a lack of attention to detail.

• Pinyin (with tone marks): cūxīn dàyì
• Part of Speech: Idiom (Chengyu), Adjective/Adverb
• HSK Level: HSK 5
• Concise Definition: To be careless, negligent, and inattentive, especially in a way that leads to mistakes.
• In a Nutshell: 粗心大意 (cūxīn dàyì) describes a state of mind where a person isn't paying attention to details. It’s not about a single accident, but rather a general lack of focus or meticulousness that causes errors. Think of someone who frequently misplaces their keys, makes typos in important documents, or forgets a crucial step in a recipe. It implies that the mistake could have been avoided with more concentration and care.

• 粗 (cū): Rough, coarse, crude. Imagine a piece of wood that hasn't been sanded down—it's not fine or detailed.
• 心 (xīn): Heart or mind. In Chinese, the heart is considered the seat of thought and emotion.
• 大 (dà): Big, large, great.
• 意 (yì): Meaning, idea, or attention.

These characters combine to paint a vivid picture. 粗心 (cūxīn) means having a “rough mind”—one that isn't fine-tuned to catch details. 大意 (dàyì) literally means “big attention,” which implies that one's focus is too broad and spread out, not concentrated on the small, important things. Together, 粗心大意 (cūxīn dàyì) describes someone whose mind is too “rough” and whose attention is too “big” to handle tasks with the necessary precision.

In Chinese culture, particularly in education and the workplace, there is a tremendous emphasis on being 认真 (rènzhēn) - conscientious and meticulous. Doing a task with care and precision is a highly respected quality. 粗心大意 is the direct and unwelcome opposite of this ideal.

• Comparison to Western Culture: While English has terms like “scatterbrained,” “absent-minded,” or “careless,” 粗心大意 often carries a stronger note of criticism. In the West, being “scatterbrained” might be seen as a quirky, sometimes endearing personality trait (e.g., the “absent-minded professor”). In China, being 粗心大意 is almost always viewed as a flaw that needs to be corrected. It's not an excuse for a mistake but the very reason for it, implying a lack of responsibility or effort.

Parents and teachers constantly use this phrase to scold children for making preventable errors on homework or exams. A student who knows the material but loses points for simple calculation errors will invariably be told they are too 粗心大意.

This idiom is extremely common in everyday life.

• Self-Criticism: People often use it in a self-deprecating way after making a silly mistake. Saying “我太粗心大意了 (Wǒ tài cūxīn dàyì le)” is a common way to own up to an error caused by inattention.
• Criticizing Others: It is frequently used to describe others, but this is a direct criticism. A boss might tell an employee, “你做事不能这么粗心大意 (Nǐ zuòshì bùnéng zhème cūxīn dàyì),” meaning “You can't be so careless in your work.”
• Connotation and Formality: The term is consistently negative. It is used in both informal conversations among friends and family and in formal settings like performance reviews.

• Example 1:
  • 这次考试我又因为粗心大意丢了好几分。
  • Pinyin: Zhè cì kǎoshì wǒ yòu yīnwèi cūxīn dàyì diūle hǎojǐ fēn.
  • English: I lost several points on this exam again due to carelessness.
  • Analysis: A classic example of a student lamenting mistakes made not from a lack of knowledge, but from a lack of attention.
• Example 2:
  • 他是个粗心大意的人，总是丢三落四的。
  • Pinyin: Tā shì ge cūxīn dàyì de rén, zǒngshì diūsānlàsì de.
  • English: He is a careless person, always forgetting things.
  • Analysis: Here, 粗心大意 is used as an adjective to describe a person's general character trait. It's linked directly to the related idiom 丢三落四 (diūsān làsì).
• Example 3:
  • 做财务工作，绝对不能粗心大意。
  • Pinyin: Zuò cáiwù gōngzuò, juéduì bùnéng cūxīn dàyì.
  • English: When doing finance work, you absolutely cannot be negligent.
  • Analysis: This sentence highlights the importance of meticulousness in a professional context. The consequence of being 粗心大意 in finance could be severe.
• Example 4:
  • 对不起，是我粗心大意，把你的名字写错了。
  • Pinyin: Duìbuqǐ, shì wǒ cūxīn dàyì, bǎ nǐ de míngzi xiě cuò le.
  • English: I'm sorry, it was my carelessness that I wrote your name incorrectly.
  • Analysis: A common way to apologize for a mistake caused by inattention, taking responsibility for the error.
• Example 5:
  • 医生粗心大意地开错了药，后果不堪设想。
  • Pinyin: Yīshēng cūxīn dàyì de kāi cuò le yào, hòuguǒ bùkānshèxiǎng.
  • English: The doctor carelessly prescribed the wrong medicine; the consequences would be unimaginable.
  • Analysis: This shows how 粗心大意 can be used as an adverb (地 de follows it) to describe how an action was performed. It also demonstrates the serious potential outcomes.
• Example 6:
  • 妈妈总是提醒我出门前要检查东西，不要粗心大意。
  • Pinyin: Māma zǒngshì tíxǐng wǒ chūmén qián yào jiǎnchá dōngxi, búyào cūxīn dàyì.
  • English: Mom always reminds me to check my things before going out and not to be scatterbrained.
  • Analysis: This reflects its common use in a family setting, as a piece of advice or a gentle warning from a parent to a child.
• Example 7:
  • 这个项目的失败，主要是由于项目经理的粗心大意。
  • Pinyin: Zhège xiàngmù de shībài, zhǔyào shì yóuyú xiàngmù jīnglǐ de cūxīn dàyì.
  • English: The failure of this project was mainly due to the project manager's negligence.
  • Analysis: A formal use of the term in a business post-mortem or report. It assigns blame clearly.
• Example 8:
  • 我粗心大意地把盐当成糖放进了咖啡里。
  • Pinyin: Wǒ cūxīn dàyì de bǎ yán dàngchéng táng fàng jìnle kāfēi lǐ.
  • English: I carelessly mistook salt for sugar and put it in the coffee.
  • Analysis: A perfect example of a low-stakes, everyday mistake that is perfectly described by 粗心大意.
• Example 9:
  • 如果你不改掉粗心大意的毛病，以后会吃大亏的。
  • Pinyin: Rúguǒ nǐ bù gǎi diào cūxīn dàyì de máobìng, yǐhòu huì chī dàkuī de.
  • English: If you don't fix your bad habit of being careless, you will suffer big losses in the future.
  • Analysis: This sentence frames 粗心大意 as a “毛病 (máobìng)” - a flaw or bad habit that needs to be corrected to avoid future trouble.
• Example 10:
  • 这份报告里有好几个错别字，你是不是太粗心大意了？
  • Pinyin: Zhè fèn bàogào lǐ yǒu hǎojǐ ge cuòbiézì, nǐ shìbushì tài cūxīn dàyì le?
  • English: There are several typos in this report, were you being too careless?
  • Analysis: A common rhetorical question used by a superior to point out errors to a subordinate. The tone is critical.

• 粗心大意 (cūxīn dàyì) vs. 不小心 (bù xiǎoxīn): This is the most common point of confusion for learners.
  • 不小心 (bù xiǎoxīn) means “accidentally” or “by accident.” It refers to a specific, often physical, mishap. It's more of an event. Example: 我不小心把杯子打碎了 (Wǒ bù xiǎoxīn bǎ bēizi dǎsuìle) - I accidentally broke the cup.
  • 粗心大意 (cūxīn dàyì) describes the state of mind or character trait that leads to mistakes. It's the “why” behind the accident. You might break the cup (不小心) because you were being careless (粗心大意).
• False Friend (“Careless”): While “careless” is a good translation, be aware that in English, “careless” can also mean not caring about the feelings of others (e.g., a careless remark). 粗心大意 does not have this meaning; it is strictly about a lack of attention to detail in tasks.
• Incorrect Usage: Do not use 粗心大意 for situations that don't involve tasks requiring precision.
  • Incorrect: 我粗心大意地爱上了他。 (Wǒ cūxīn dàyì de ài shàngle tā.) - This is wrong. Falling in love is an emotional process, not a task where you forgot to check the details.

• 马虎 (mǎhu) - A very common and slightly more colloquial synonym for 粗心大意. It means “careless” or “sloppy.”
• 丢三落四 (diūsān làsì) - “To lose three and leave behind four.” An idiom describing someone who is very forgetful, a common symptom of being 粗心大意.
• 草率 (cǎoshuài) - Hasty, sloppy. This term emphasizes doing something too quickly and without proper thought, whereas 粗心大意 emphasizes a lack of mental focus.
• 认真 (rènzhēn) - Antonym. Conscientious, serious, meticulous. To do things with great care and dedication.
• 仔细 (zǐxì) - Antonym. Careful, attentive to detail. The direct opposite of being 粗心.
• 不小心 (bù xiǎoxīn) - Accidental, by chance. Describes the event itself, not the underlying trait.
• 疏忽 (shūhu) - Negligence, oversight. A more formal term, often used in legal or professional contexts to describe an error of omission.