坏
huài · HSK 1
spoiled
🍎 huài sounds like 'why' — why is this apple spoiled?
坏 = 土 (earth) + 不 (not) in simplified form: not-good earth, i.e. ruined or spoiled. The pinyin huài rhymes with English 'why', giving a verbal hook for the meaning 'bad/spoiled'.
坏 — earth 土 + 不 (not)
A modern simplified form. The left side 土 (earth) suggests something physical or material, while the right side 不 (not/negative) acts as a semantic hint meaning 'not good.' The traditional form 壞 used 褱 as a phonetic component, but the simplified 坏 reuses an older variant character.