够戗 (gòu qiāng) — terrible, unbearable (used to describe a tough situation); quite, really (intensifier, often after 得 as a complement)

Definition

A colloquial, spoken intensifier meaning 'terribly, unbearably' — almost always used after 得 as a complement (累得够戗, 难 得够戗) to stress an extreme degree. Stronger and more vivid than 很 / 非常.

adjective
terribleunbearable (used to describe a tough situation)quitereally (intensifier, often after 得 as a complement)

Examples

  • 够戗，。
    Jīn tiān lèi dé gòu qiāng, lián fàn dōu bù xiǎng chī le.
    I'm so exhausted today I don't even feel like eating.
  • ，够戗！
    Zhè dào tí tài nán le, zhēn gòu qiāng!
    This problem is way too hard — it's really rough!
  • 够戗，。
    Tā fā shāo shāo dé gòu qiāng, dé gǎn jǐn qù yī yuàn.
    His fever is awful — we need to get him to the hospital right away.

Origin

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 夠; 够 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
多多duō
Sound part声符shēngfú
句
句jù夠gòu
Same sound today

In the traditional form 夠, 多 is the part tied to the meaning and 句 is the part that gives the sound; the simplified 够 is a later shorthand.

Open 够 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

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