Definition
This is a four-character fixed expression (固定短语) meaning 'unbearable' or 'hard to endure'. It is used in both spoken and written Chinese, but carries a slightly formal or emphatic tone — stronger than 受不了 (which is more colloquial). You can use it to describe physical pain, emotional distress, or intolerable situations. The structure is fixed: 难以 (hard to) + 忍受 (endure).
f.e.
unbearablehard to endureintolerable
Examples
- 难以忍受。Zhè zhǒng téngtòng zhēn de ràng rén nán yǐ rěn shòu.This kind of pain is truly unbearable.
- 难以忍受。Xiàtiān de mēnrè lìng rén nán yǐ rěn shòu.The muggy heat of summer is hard to bear.
- 难以忍受。Tā duì tóngshì de àomàn tàidu gǎndào nán yǐ rěn shòu.He found his colleague's arrogant attitude intolerable.
Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.