Complaining & moaning in Chinese 抱怨和吐槽
bàoyuàn hé tǔcáo
Complain in Chinese is 抱怨 (bào yuàn).
Also searched for as: moaning, whinging, venting, ranting, complain, grumbling.
Letting off steam about life's little annoyances. 15 essential complaining & moaning words in Mandarin Chinese, with pinyin and English. Open it in the app to hear each word, tick off the ones you know and turn them into flashcards.
Complaining in Chinese ranges from 抱怨 (bào yuàn), to complain, to the playful 吐槽 (tǔ cáo), a light-hearted rant you'll hear constantly among friends. Short exclamations do most of the work: 烦死了 (fán sǐ le), so annoying!, and 受不了 (shòu bu liǎo), I can't stand it. They're perfect for grumbling about the weather, the commute or work, and for sympathising when a friend needs to let off steam.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 吐槽 | tǔ cáo | to vent; to rant about |
| 抱怨 | bào yuàn | to complain |
| 发牢骚 | fā láo sāo | to grumble |
| 烦死了 | fán sǐ le | so annoying! |
| 受不了 | shòu bu liǎo | can't stand it |
| 气死我了 | qì sǐ wǒ le | that makes me so mad |
| 无语 | wú yǔ | speechless (in exasperation) |
| 郁闷 | yù mèn | fed up; down |
| 倒霉 | dǎo méi | unlucky |
| 凭什么 | píng shén me | why should…?; what gives them the right? |
| 太过分了 | tài guò fèn le | that's going too far |
| 心累 | xīn lèi | emotionally drained |
| 不满 | bù mǎn | dissatisfied; discontent |
| 发泄 | fā xiè | to vent; to let off steam |
| 别提了 | bié tí le | don't even get me started |
Usage tips
- 死了 (sǐ le) after an adjective is a casual intensifier, not literally about death: 累死了 (lèi sǐ le), I'm exhausted; 热死了 (rè sǐ le), it's boiling; 饿死了 (è sǐ le), I'm starving.
- 吐槽 is usually playful and can be about anything, even yourself, while 抱怨 suggests persistent, negative complaining: 他总是抱怨 (tā zǒng shì bào yuàn) is a criticism.
- 凭什么 (píng shén me), "why should I?", is confrontational; it's fine when moaning to friends about a situation, but said directly to a boss it sounds aggressive.
Common mistakes
- Using 无语 (wú yǔ) to mean quiet or silent: it expresses exasperation, as in "I'm lost for words" → for quiet, say 安静 (ān jìng) or 不说话 (bù shuō huà).
- Using 倒霉 (dǎo méi) to mean sad: it's about bad luck → if you're fed up or down, say 郁闷 (yù mèn).
- Saying 受不了 as shòu bu le → the 了 here is liǎo: shòu bu liǎo.
Mini dialogue
- A今天过得怎么样？Jīn tiān guò de zěn me yàng?How was your day?
- B别提了！地铁坏了，我迟到了半个小时。Bié tí le! Dì tiě huài le, wǒ chí dào le bàn ge xiǎo shí.Don't get me started! The metro broke down and I was half an hour late.
- A真倒霉！老板说你了吗？Zhēn dǎo méi! Lǎo bǎn shuō nǐ le ma?What bad luck! Did your boss tell you off?
- B说了，还让我晚上加班。烦死了！Shuō le, hái ràng wǒ wǎn shang jiā bān. Fán sǐ le!He did, and he's making me work late tonight. So annoying!
- A太过分了吧！走，我请你喝一杯，好好吐槽一下。Tài guò fèn le ba! Zǒu, wǒ qǐng nǐ hē yī bēi, hǎo hǎo tǔ cáo yī xià.That's going too far! Come on, I'll buy you a drink and you can have a proper rant.
Example sentences
- 我要吐槽一下我的室友。I need to have a rant about my flatmate.
- 他整天抱怨工作太累。He complains all day that work's too tiring.
- 别发牢骚了，快干活吧。Stop grumbling and get on with it.
- 又下雨了，烦死了！Raining again, so annoying!
- 这么热，我真受不了。It's so hot, I really can't take it.
- 他又迟到了，气死我了！He's late again, it makes me so mad!
- 他的回答让我很无语。His answer left me lost for words.
- 考试没过，我今天真郁闷。I failed my exam, I'm really fed up today.
- 我今天真倒霉！I've had such bad luck today!
- 凭什么让我加班？Why should I be the one doing overtime?
- 这也太过分了吧！That's going way too far!
- 跟他说话好心累。Talking to him is exhausting.
- 大家对新规定很不满。Everyone's unhappy with the new rules.
- 你需要发泄一下。You need to let off some steam.
- 别提了，今天糟透了。Don't get me started, today was awful.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The Complaining & moaning speaking island has 8 everyday questions about complaining & moaning to prepare your own answers to.