Chinese word

偷懒

Pronunciation

Pinyintōu lǎn

Meaning

  • verbbe lazy

Example

他最近总是偷懒，什么都不做。tā zuì jìn zǒng shì tōu lǎn shén me dōu bú zuò

He has been lazy lately and doesn't do anything.

Illustration for 偷懒 (be lazy)

More examples

别在上班时间偷懒，老板会发现的。bié zài shàng bān shí jiān tōu lǎn láo bǎn huì fā xiàn de

Don't slack off during work hours, or the boss will find out.

Core concept

Treating needed work as something to slip past instead of taking it seriously.

Common phrases

  • 偷懒一下tōu lǎn yí xià

    slack off for a bit

  • 上班偷懒shàng bān tōu lǎn

    slack off at work

  • 课堂上偷懒kè táng shàng tōu lǎn

    slack off in class

Similar words

懈怠xiè dài: To fail to work or study with the care and effort that should be given.
松懈sōng xiè: To become less careful and focused, causing necessary work to receive less attention.

Definition in Chinese

在应当付出努力的场合选择偷懒，不认真做事情的行为。zài yīng dāng fù chū nǔ lì de chǎng hé xuǎn zé tōu lǎn bú rèn zhēn zuò shì qíng de xíng wéi

Word origin

偷 (tōu, "steal") + 懒 (lǎn, "lazy") presents laziness as secretly taking effort away from work that requires it.

Usage tips

  • English speakers may use "lazy" for a lasting personality trait, but this Chinese verb often focuses on shirking on a particular task or occasion.

Other meanings

  • slack offverb
  • cut cornersverb

Opposites

Related words

  • 偷懒鬼tōu lǎn guǐslackernoun

Word lists with this word