<p><strong>Edit:</strong> in pieces&quot; may imply &quot;broken apart&quot; I would say &quot;in chunks&quot; or &quot;in blocks&quot; sound better</p>
<p>~</p>
<p>块 = piece</p>
<p>状 = 状态 = state</p>
<p>&quot;<strong>块状</strong>&quot; means &quot;<strong>in pieces</strong>&quot;</p>
<p>&quot;一块块的状态&quot; (in the state of pieces) --&gt; &quot;块状&quot;(in pieces)</p>
<p>Since 块 can be different sharps,  状 in 块状 wouldn't mean 形状(shape), it can only be 状态 (state)</p>
<p><em>If you cut the whole thing into little squares. it would be 切成方块 (cut into square pieces) while 切成方状 (cut into square shape) would mean it became a square shape as a whole</em></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-09T02:40:25.777Z
On the one hand, pieces include 片状, which is definitely not 块状. Simply saying 块状 means in pieces would be in my opinion inaccurate. On the other, 块 can be 2-dimensional shape as in 几块田地, or more commonly 3-dimensional. 块状 can be either of them, with a solid shape.
lilysirius
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-09T03:16:20.427Z
yes, "in pieces" may imply "broken apart" I would say "in chunks" or "in blocks" sound better
Tang Ho
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-08T14:49:01.370Z
2022-12-09T03:18:11.673Z
2022-12-09T03:18:11.673Z
Tang Ho
<p>&quot;～状&quot; is a construction that means &quot;having the form or appearance of&quot;. It is usually used after a noun that stands for an object with some definite and recognizable shape or form, and can thus be roughly translated as &quot;-shaped&quot;. For example, the word for coronavirus is 冠状病毒, which glosses as &quot;crown-shaped virus&quot;.</p>
<p>In this case, 块 means lumps or pieces, so 块状 is literally &quot;lumpy-shaped&quot;, but more accurately just means &quot;pieces&quot; or &quot;dice&quot;. Taken literally this construction seems redundant, but the compound is idiomatic, especially in recipes or food writing, where it might be used along with other words describing differently shaped cuts of food, like 片状 (flat, thin slices) 条状 (strips) 团状 (round globs).</p>
<p>In this sentence, though, I would say the instructions are a little vague and unnatural. Normally I would think of 块状 as a shape that has roughly equal dimensions (probably a few centimeters) on all sides. This would be a weird shape to cut a pancake into. Thus I think the author probably simply meant &quot;pieces&quot;, rather than a more precise shape.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-08T15:07:04.770Z
条状 and 团状 are like 方状, all have a definite shape; 状 would mean "shape" in these cases, but 块(piece) doesn't have a definite shape -- "piece shape" doesn't make sense.
Tang Ho
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-08T15:13:31.720Z
@TangHo Just because the construction doesn't make literal sense, doesn't mean it's not an actual word or common usage. A quick google for "切成块状" turns up over a million pages. The word doesn't have to have the same sense as implied by its components. Insisting so would be committing an etymological fallacy, like saying "红墨水" doesn't make sense because morpheme-wise it glosses to "red sooty water".
Elliot Yu
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-08T15:23:14.280Z
I consider, 状 in 块状 to be similar to the 状 in 泥状 (in the form/state of puree) e.g. 将鱼肉打成泥状 (puree the fish meat)
Tang Ho
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-08T15:30:34.990Z
@TangHo Also, I don't agree that 块 is a shape any less definite than 团 or 条. I have explained in my answer that 块 does designate a shape that can be defined by certain geometrical features to the same degree as 团 and 条. I also don't believe there is a meaningful distinction in the sense of 状 as "shape" vs "state" here, because the focus is on a geometrical shape or physical state and doesn't involve the more abstract "state of being" sense.
Elliot Yu
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-08T15:35:24.880Z
Consider, in this context, 块 in 块状 refers to 碎块 or 散块
Tang Ho
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-08T15:38:15.753Z
@TangHo I'm not sure what your latest comment is meant to address. I have said my piece and I will leave it to readers to judge my answer on its merits.
Elliot Yu
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-09T01:47:12.133Z
I don't think we can argue about 块状 in isolation. Once again the context would determine the resultant "shape" of whatever is being cut. In isolation, I would say 块状 has no expressed definite "shape". It simply means to cut it into "pieces", and what "shape" those pieces finally turn out would of course depend on the cut material. If it is a sausage, it would be little roundish "pieces", and the 块 would imply fairly thinish pieces. Just randomly substituting 块 with whatever adjective available while ignoring the contextual marker would never resolve the issue. My 2 cents, (or 角)
Wayne Cheah
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-09T02:43:15.517Z
@WayneCheah For the sausage, if it’s cut in thin pieces, I would call them 片. If thick, then they’re 块.
lilysirius
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-09T04:09:48.687Z
I was careful to say, "thinish", (not thin), as opposed to someone saying "chunky" which I do not agree applies to 块. I am aware that something really "thin" is 片. It is not always that anything "thick" is 块, as in "一块钱", ("One Dollar" which in the old days is "paper dollar"), which is not "thick" Herein again lies problems of non-contextual definition compounded with cross-language translation.
Wayne Cheah
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-08T14:57:04.967Z
2022-12-08T14:57:04.967Z
Elliot Yu
<p>My opinion:</p>
<p>For the cake, &quot;块&quot; indicates a &quot;chunk&quot; (a square/rectangular piece) of it.</p>
<p>&quot;狀&quot;, as in 形狀, means &quot;appearance&quot; or &quot;shape&quot;.</p>
<p>Combined, 块狀 - chunk appearance/shape.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-08T17:08:54.737Z
2022-12-08T17:08:54.737Z
r13
<p>高手往往把面擀得薄如白纸，拌好的萝卜丝儿铺到饼上后，得再折叠两三次，要求饼熟之后表皮是透明的，能透过表皮看见萝卜丝儿。最后用刀切成块状，饼便做好了。</p>
<p>This is from the Standard Course Book of HSK5, chapter 19. What is the meaning of 块状? pieces great? pieces form? That is said by dictionaries if you search the characters 块 and 状 separately.</p>
<p>Otherwise, the EC dictionary says that 块状 means lump while the Pleco dictionary says it is an adjective meaning bulky or massive, but I cannot make any of these definitions make sense. Any help?</p>

<meaning><meaning-in-context>
What is the meaning of 块状 in 最后用刀切成块状?
# What is the meaning of 块状 in 最后用刀切成块状?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2022-12-08)

高手往往把面擀得薄如白纸，拌好的萝卜丝儿铺到饼上后，得再折叠两三次，要求饼熟之后表皮是透明的，能透过表皮看见萝卜丝儿。最后用刀切成块状，饼便做好了。

This is from the Standard Course Book of HSK5, chapter 19. What is the meaning of 块状? pieces great? pieces form? That is said by dictionaries if you search the characters 块 and 状 separately.

Otherwise, the EC dictionary says that 块状 means lump while the Pleco dictionary says it is an adjective meaning bulky or massive, but I cannot make any of these definitions make sense. Any help?

**Tags:** meaning, meaning-in-context


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## 3 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2022-12-08. Score: 0 | Accepted answer

**Edit:** in pieces" may imply "broken apart" I would say "in chunks" or "in blocks" sound better

~

块 = piece

状 = 状态 = state

"**块状**" means "**in pieces**"

"一块块的状态" (in the state of pieces) --> "块状"(in pieces)

Since 块 can be different sharps, 状 in 块状 wouldn't mean 形状(shape), it can only be 状态 (state)

*If you cut the whole thing into little squares. it would be 切成方块 (cut into square pieces) while 切成方状 (cut into square shape) would mean it became a square shape as a whole*

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: On the one hand, pieces include 片状, which is definitely not 块状. Simply saying 块状 means in pieces would be in my opinion inaccurate. On the other, 块 can be 2-dimensional shape as in 几块田地, or more commonly 3-dimensional. 块状 can be either of them, with a solid shape.  
> **username_1**: yes, "in pieces" may imply "broken apart" I would say "in chunks" or "in blocks" sound better  

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### Answer by username_3 on 2022-12-08. Score: 2

"～状" is a construction that means "having the form or appearance of". It is usually used after a noun that stands for an object with some definite and recognizable shape or form, and can thus be roughly translated as "-shaped". For example, the word for coronavirus is 冠状病毒, which glosses as "crown-shaped virus".

In this case, 块 means lumps or pieces, so 块状 is literally "lumpy-shaped", but more accurately just means "pieces" or "dice". Taken literally this construction seems redundant, but the compound is idiomatic, especially in recipes or food writing, where it might be used along with other words describing differently shaped cuts of food, like 片状 (flat, thin slices) 条状 (strips) 团状 (round globs).

In this sentence, though, I would say the instructions are a little vague and unnatural. Normally I would think of 块状 as a shape that has roughly equal dimensions (probably a few centimeters) on all sides. This would be a weird shape to cut a pancake into. Thus I think the author probably simply meant "pieces", rather than a more precise shape.

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: 条状 and 团状 are like 方状, all have a definite shape; 状 would mean "shape" in these cases, but 块(piece) doesn't have a definite shape -- "piece shape" doesn't make sense.  
> **username_3**: @username_1 Just because the construction doesn't make literal sense, doesn't mean it's not an actual word or common usage. A quick google for "切成块状" turns up over a million pages. The word doesn't have to have the same sense as implied by its components. Insisting so would be committing an etymological fallacy, like saying "红墨水" doesn't make sense because morpheme-wise it glosses to "red sooty water".  
> **username_1**: I consider, 状 in 块状 to be similar to the 状 in 泥状 (in the form/state of puree) e.g. 将鱼肉打成泥状 (puree the fish meat)  
> **username_3**: @username_1 Also, I don't agree that 块 is a shape any less definite than 团 or 条. I have explained in my answer that 块 does designate a shape that can be defined by certain geometrical features to the same degree as 团 and 条. I also don't believe there is a meaningful distinction in the sense of 状 as "shape" vs "state" here, because the focus is on a geometrical shape or physical state and doesn't involve the more abstract "state of being" sense.  
> **username_1**: Consider, in this context, 块 in 块状 refers to 碎块 or 散块  
> **username_3**: @username_1 I'm not sure what your latest comment is meant to address. I have said my piece and I will leave it to readers to judge my answer on its merits.  
> **username_4**: I don't think we can argue about 块状 in isolation. Once again the context would determine the resultant "shape" of whatever is being cut. In isolation, I would say 块状 has no expressed definite "shape". It simply means to cut it into "pieces", and what "shape" those pieces finally turn out would of course depend on the cut material. If it is a sausage, it would be little roundish "pieces", and the 块 would imply fairly thinish pieces. Just randomly substituting 块 with whatever adjective available while ignoring the contextual marker would never resolve the issue. My 2 cents, (or 角)  
> **username_2**: @username_4 For the sausage, if it’s cut in thin pieces, I would call them 片. If thick, then they’re 块.  
> **username_4**: I was careful to say, "thinish", (not thin), as opposed to someone saying "chunky" which I do not agree applies to 块. I am aware that something really "thin" is 片. It is not always that anything "thick" is 块, as in "一块钱", ("One Dollar" which in the old days is "paper dollar"), which is not "thick" Herein again lies problems of non-contextual definition compounded with cross-language translation.  

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### Answer by username_5 on 2022-12-08. Score: 0

My opinion:

For the cake, "块" indicates a "chunk" (a square/rectangular piece) of it.

"狀", as in 形狀, means "appearance" or "shape".

Combined, 块狀 - chunk appearance/shape.


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