Definition
告状 (gào zhuàng) has two distinct meanings: (1) to tell on someone to a person of authority—different from general 抱怨 (bàoyuàn, 'to grumble') and formal customer 投诉 (tóusù, 'to file a complaint'); (2) to bring a lawsuit, more colloquial than the formal legal term 起诉 (qǐsù). As a separable verb (离合词), it can split, e.g., 告一状.
verb
to tell on someoneto complain (to a superior)to bring a lawsuitto sue
Examples
- 告状，。Dìdi yòu qù gēn māma gào zhuàng le, zhēn fánrén.My little brother went to tell Mom on me again—so annoying.
- 告状。Yuángōng xiàng jīnglǐ gào zhuàng shuō tóngshì jīngcháng chídào.The employee complained to the manager that a coworker was often late.
- 。Tā juédìng xiàng fǎyuàn gào yí zhuàng.He decided to file a lawsuit in court.
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