Chinese word

干咳

Pronunciation

Pinyingān ké

Meaning

  • noundry cough

Example

感冒的时候我常常有干咳，尤其在晚上。gǎn mào de shí hòu wǒ cháng cháng yǒu gān ké yóu qí zài wǎn shàng

I often have a dry cough when I have a cold, especially at night.

Illustration for 干咳 (dry cough)

More examples

吸入冷空气会引起干咳。xī rù lěng kōng qì huì yín qǐ gān ké

Inhaling cold air can cause a dry cough.

Core concept

A cough that feels dry and scratchy instead of bringing phlegm up.

Common phrases

  • 有干咳yǒu gān ké

    have a dry cough

  • 持续干咳chí xù gān ké

    have a persistent dry cough

  • 夜间干咳yè jiān gān ké

    have a nighttime dry cough

Similar words

咳嗽ké sòu: The usual broad term for a cough of any kind, including one with phlegm.
空咳kōng ké: An everyday term for coughing from throat irritation without bringing up phlegm.
湿咳shī ké: A cough marked by a wet feeling and substantial phlegm.

Definition in Chinese

以喉部干燥和刺激性咳嗽为主，咳出痰的迹象很少或没有，多见于过敏反应、上呼吸道感染早期或受冷空气刺激时。yǐ hóu bù gān zào hé cì jī xìng ké sòu wéi zhǔ ké chū tán de jì xiàng hén shǎo huò méi yǒu duō jiàn yú guò mín fǎn yìng shàng hū xī dào gán rǎn zǎo qī huò shòu lěng kōng qì cì jī shí

Word origin

干 (gān, "dry") + 咳 (ké, "cough") forms a direct description of coughing without the usual sign of mucus.

Usage tips

  • In everyday health talk, adding when the cough occurs or what makes it worse gives more useful information than using the symptom word alone.

Opposites

  • 湿咳shī kéwet coughnoun

Word lists with this word