我失声了
wǒ shīshēng le
In Chinese, "I lost my voice" is expressed as 我失声了 (wǒ shīshēng le).
The phrase is used when a person is unable to speak because of an illness or injury to the throat. While 我失声了 is used for a complete loss of voice, 嗓子哑了 is more commonly used when the voice is simply hoarse or raspy due to illness or overuse.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Cantonese, you can say 我冇聲。 to mean "I have no voice" or 我聲冇晒。 to mean "I lost my voice."
How does it change in a sentence?
In the phrase 我失声了, the particle 了 (le) at the end indicates a change of state, signifying that the speaker previously had a voice but no longer does.
How do you pronounce it?
wǒ shīshēng le
Did you know?
- In Chinese culture, losing one's voice is often treated as a 'heat' imbalance in the body. A common suggestion from elders would be to drink something 'cooling' to counteract the inflammation.
- The character 声 (voice/sound) is a pictograph that originally represented a bell or a musical instrument.
- The word for 'voice' in 失声了, which is 声, can also mean 'reputation' or 'fame' in different contexts. To 'lose one's voice' can metaphorically imply losing one's influence or status in certain literary settings.
Example conversation
Haoran is trying to talk to Jiayi but can only whisper.
- 浩然 Haoran佳怡，我失声了。Jiāyí, wǒ shīshēng le.Jiayi, I lost my voice.
- 佳怡 Jiayi怎么了？你的嗓子疼吗？Zěnme le? Nǐ de sǎngzi téng ma?What happened? Does your throat hurt?
- 浩然 Haoran有点疼，现在没法说话。Yǒudiǎn téng, xiànzài méifǎ shuōhuà.It hurts a bit, I can't speak right now.
- 佳怡 Jiayi快去喝点温水休息吧。Kuài qù hē diǎn wēnshuǐ xiūxí ba.Go drink some warm water and rest.
