折腾

zhē teng

HSK 7–9

Meaning

to toss from side to side (e.g. sleeplessly)
to repeat sth over and over again
to torment sb
to play crazy
to squander (time, money)

Definition

指反复做某事，使人感到麻烦或劳累；或指翻来覆去、不消停。

To toss about; to repeatedly do something that causes trouble or exhaustion; to mess about; to pester.

Usage

常用于口语，表示一种不耐烦或耗费精力的行为，有时带负面意味，也可指为了达成目的而反复尝试。

Commonly used in spoken language to express impatience or energy-consuming actions, sometimes with a negative connotation, or to refer to repeated attempts to achieve a goal.

Examples

1 别折腾了，赶紧睡觉吧。 (Stop tossing about and go to sleep.)
2 这台电脑老出问题，真是折腾人。 (This computer keeps having problems; it's such a hassle.)
3 他折腾了一整天，终于把房间收拾好了。 (He busied himself all day and finally tidied up the room.)
4 你折腾来折腾去，最后还不是一样的结果。 (You keep messing about, and in the end, it's still the same result.)
5 人生就是不断折腾的过程。 (Life is a process of constant struggle and toil.)

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