亏欠 (kuī qiàn) — to owe (money); to be in arrears; to feel indebted to; to owe (a debt of gratitude)
Definition
Cover two senses: literal debt (money owed) and figurative debt (gratitude, an explanation). The gratitude sense is the one English-speakers miss — it's the same verb as owing money, used for emotional or moral debt.
verb
to owe (money)to be in arrearsto feel indebted toto owe (a debt of gratitude)
Examples
- 亏欠。Gōng sī qù nián kuī qiàn le yín háng yí dà bǐ qián.The company owed the bank a large sum of money last year.
- 亏欠。Tā jué de zì jǐ kuī qiàn le fù mǔ hěn duō.He feels he owes his parents a lot.
- 亏欠。Tā kuī qiàn le péng you yí gè jiě shì.He owes his friend an explanation.
Appears in
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