Chinese word

抱怨

Pronunciation

Pinyinbào yuàn

Meaning

  • verbcomplain

Example

我不想总是抱怨。wǒ bù xiǎng zǒng shì bào yuàn

I don't want to complain all the time.

Illustration for 抱怨 (complain)

More examples

她经常向朋友抱怨工作压力。tā jīng cháng xiàng péng yǒu bào yuàn gōng zuò yā lì

She often complains to her friends about work pressure.

Core concept

A dissatisfied feeling is pushed outward in words, often with a blaming edge.

Common phrases

  • 向老板抱怨xiàng láo bǎn bào yuàn

    complain to the boss

  • 抱怨工作bào yuàn gōng zuò

    complain about work

  • 抱怨生活bào yuàn shēng huó

    complain about life

Similar words

埋怨mán yuàn: To complain to someone or about something with a feeling of resentment.
发牢骚fā láo sāo: To vent dissatisfaction in a casual, grumbling way.
责备zé bèi: To tell someone that their behavior or result deserves blame.
指责zhǐ zé: To condemn someone's actions or behavior in strong language.

Definition in Chinese

把对某事的不满用言语表达出来，通常带有责备或牢骚的语气。bǎ duì mǒu shì de bù mǎn yòng yán yǔ biǎo dá chū lái tōng cháng dài yǒu zé bèi huò láo sāo de yǔ qì

Word origin

The compound 抱怨 (bàoyuàn, "complain") combines 抱 (bào, "hold") and 怨 (yuàn, "resentment"), picturing resentment held inside and then voiced.

Usage tips

  • It commonly describes a person's manner of speaking, not a formal request for repair, so workplace or service conversations use a separate request when a solution is wanted.

Other meanings

  • grumbleverb
  • whineverb

Opposites

Related words

  • 抱怨者bào yuàn zhěcomplainernoun
  • 抱怨不已bào yuàn bù yǐkeep complainingidiom

Word lists with this word