Chinese word

睡

Pronunciation

Pinyinshuì

Meaning

  • verbsleep

Example

我太累了，想睡一会儿。wǒ tài lèi le xiǎng shuì yí huìr

I am so tired that I want to sleep for a while.

Illustration for 睡 (sleep)

More examples

我晚上十点就睡觉。wǒ wǎn shàng shí diǎn jiù shuì jiào

I go to sleep at ten in the evening.

Core concept

A resting state in which the eyes close and the mind grows quiet, lasting from a short nap to a whole night.

Common phrases

  • 睡觉shuì jiào

    sleep

  • 睡一会儿shuì yí huìr

    sleep for a while

Similar words

睡觉shuì jiào: To sleep, especially as an activity done at night or during a short break.
睡着shuì zháo: To become asleep and remain in the state of sleeping.
休息xiū xī: To pause activity so the body or mind can recover from tiredness.

Definition in Chinese

闭目或放松意识以休息的状态，既可以是长时间睡眠，也可以是短暂打盹。bì mù huò fàng sōng yì shí yǐ xiū xī de zhuàng tài jì ké yǐ shì cháng shí jiān shuì mián yě ké yǐ shì duǎn zàn dá dǔn

Word origin

睡 (shuì, "sleep") combines 目 (mù, "eye") with 垂 (chuí, "hang down"), using the eye as the meaning clue and 垂 as the sound clue.

Usage tips

  • English often separates sleep from nap, but Chinese uses the same verb for both, so time words and context show whether the rest is brief or lasts through the night.

Other meanings

  • napverb

Related words

Word lists with this word