Definition
吸烟 is a separable verb (离合词) meaning 'to smoke'. The verb 吸 ('inhale') and the object 烟 ('tobacco') can split mid-sentence when aspect markers (了, 过), measure words (一支), or durations (十年) come between them — e.g., 吸了一支烟 ('smoked a cigarette'), 吸了十年烟 ('smoked for ten years'). Do not insert the person you're smoking with; the split is purely between 吸 and 烟.
v.o.
to smoke (tobacco, e.g. cigarettes or a pipe)
Examples
- 吸烟。Tā měitiān xī yān.He smokes every day.
- ，。Tā xī le shí nián yān, xiànzài jiè le.He smoked for ten years and now he has quit.
- 吸烟。Yīshēng jiànyì tā shǎo xī yān.The doctor advised him to smoke less.
Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.