Chinese word

生存

Pronunciation

Pinyinshēng cún

Meaning

  • verbsurvive

Example

地震后，很多人努力生存下来。dì zhèn hòu hěn duō rén nǔ lì shēng cún xià lái

After the earthquake, many people struggled to survive.

Illustration for 生存 (survive)

More examples

他在雪山中努力生存下来。tā zài xuě shān zhōng nǔ lì shēng cún xià lái

He struggled to survive in the snowy mountains.

Core concept

Life or presence continues through danger or hardship instead of coming to an end.

Common phrases

  • 生存下来shēng cún xià lái

    survive

  • 难以生存nán yǐ shēng cún

    hard to survive

Similar words

活着huó zhe: To be alive and remain living in everyday situations, including difficult ones.
活下去huó xià qù: To keep living from now on despite present difficulties or danger.

Definition in Chinese

在危险或困难中保持生命或存在，不被死亡或消失所终止，继续活着或维持基本生活。zài wēi xiǎn huò kùn nán zhōng bǎo chí shēng mìng huò cún zài bú bèi sǐ wáng huò xiāo shī suǒ zhōng zhǐ jì xù huó zhe huò wéi chí jī běn shēng huó

Word origin

生 (shēng, "live") + 存 (cún, "remain") presents life or existence as something that continues rather than ends.

Usage tips

  • For everyday speech, 生存 (shēngcún, "survive") is more formal than many common expressions for staying alive and often appears in serious or written contexts.

Other meanings

  • existverb

Opposites

Related words

  • 生存者shēng cún zhěsurvivornoun
  • 生存率shēng cún lǜsurvival ratenoun

Word lists with this word