Verb + 死
HSK 6- Complements
Structure (结构 jiégòu)
Meaning (意思 yìsi)
Used after a verb/adjective to indicate an extremely high degree, carrying the hyperbolic meaning of 'to death' or 'like crazy'.
Explanation (解释 jiěshì)
死 (sǐ) here does not literally mean 'to die'; rather, it functions as a degree complement used for hyperbolic effect. It is placed after a verb or adjective to express that a feeling or state has reached an extreme, similar to saying "…to death" or "…like crazy" in English.
This structure is very common in colloquial speech, making expressions more vivid and emphatic.
Examples (例句 lìjù)(5)
- 我快饿死了！繁: 我快餓死了！Wǒ kuài è sǐ le!
I'm starving!
- 今天热死了。繁: 今天熱死了。Jīntiān rè sǐ le.
It's incredibly hot today.
- 他把我给气死了。繁: 他把我給氣死了。Tā bǎ wǒ gěi qì sǐ le.
He made me so angry I could have died.
- 这个电影笑死我了。繁: 這個電影笑死我了。Zhège diànyǐng xiào sǐ wǒ le.
This movie made me die laughing.
- 我担心死了。繁: 我擔心死了。Wǒ dānxīn sǐ le.
I'm extremely worried.
Common mistakes
- Wrong:我死累了。Correct:我累死了。
死 is a complement that must follow the verb or adjective it modifies; it cannot precede it as in Vietnamese ("chết mệt").
- Wrong:这个问题难死。Correct:这个问题难死了。
This structure commonly appears with 了 at the end of the sentence to emphasize a state that has reached its extreme.