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疲惫不堪 (pí bèi bù kān) — extremely exhausted, dog-tired

Definition

An idiom for extreme, prolonged exhaustion — stronger than 累 and more literary than 累坏了 or 累死了. Used in formal writing to describe deep physical or mental weariness.

idiom
extremely exhausteddog-tired

Examples

  • ，疲惫不堪。
    Lián xù gōng zuò le shí gè xiǎo shí, tā lèi dé pí bèi bù kān.
    After working for ten hours straight, he was dog-tired.
  • 疲惫不堪，。
    Zhè cì cháng tú lǚ xíng ràng wǒ pí bèi bù kān, zhī xiǎng hǎo hǎo shuì yí jiào.
    This long trip left me utterly exhausted; I just want to get a good night's sleep.
  • ，疲惫不堪，。
    Kǎo shì jié shù hòu, xué shēng men gè gè pí bèi bù kān, dàn xīn lǐ dōu hěn qīng sōng.
    After the exam ended, every student was dog-tired, but they all felt relieved.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
疒疒nèsick
Sound part声符shēngfú
皮
皮pí疲
Same sound today

疲 pairs 疒, which shows illness, with 皮, which gives its sound; the character means sick and tired.

Open 疲 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The picture in 不 originally showed a flower’s calyx; the “no” sense came later from a related character, not from this picture.

Open 不 →

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

Meaning part形符xíngfú
土土tǔearth
Sound part声符shēngfú
甚
甚shèn堪kān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left part 土 is earth. The right part 甚 gives the sound and also hints at something extreme, matching the old idea of a heavy earthen protrusion whose weight one bears.

Open 堪 →
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Idioms & Set Phrases

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