疼
téng/tʰɤŋ³⁵/
In Chinese, "it hurts" is expressed as 疼 (téng).
The phrase is used to express that one is experiencing physical pain. You can ask someone where they feel pain by placing 哪里 (nǎlǐ) before 疼, as in 哪里疼？ (Where does it hurt?).
Which one should you use?
While 疼 is very common in spoken language, the word 痛 serves as a more formal or clinical synonym for ache or pain.
How does it change in a sentence?
To say that it hurts a lot, place the adverb 很 (hěn) before 疼 to form 很疼.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is téng.
Did you know?
- In some contexts, the word 疼 can be used as a verb meaning 'to love' or 'to dote on' someone.
- The character for 疼 contains the radical 疒, which is the 'sickness' radical. This visual component is found in many Chinese characters related to diseases, ailments, or bodily discomfort.
- Depending on the linguistic theory, 疼 may share an ancient root with the Tibetan word གདུང་བ for feeling pain.
Examples in context
- 這裡疼。It hurts here.This sentence is useful for indicating a specific location of pain when using 疼.Tatoeba #10272574 by DaoSeng, translation #456097 by lukaszpp
- 我感到了一些疼痛。I am feeling some pain.
- 我好痛啊！It hurts so much!
- 疼死我了！It's so painful it could kill me!
- 我的頭很疼。Wǒ de tóu hěn téng.My head hurts a lot.
- 牙齒疼得厲害。Yá chǐ téng de lì hài.My tooth hurts terribly.
Example conversation
Wei and Jiayi are at home when Wei trips and hurts his leg.
- 伟 Wei我的腿好疼啊。Wǒ de tuǐ hǎo téng a.My leg hurts so much.
- 佳怡 Jiayi你哪裡疼？Nǐ nǎ lǐ téng?Where does it hurt?
- 伟 Wei膝蓋這裡疼。Xī gài zhè lǐ téng.It hurts right here on my knee.
- 佳怡 Jiayi別動，我幫你看看。Bié dòng, wǒ bāng nǐ kàn kàn.Don't move, let me take a look for you.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 疼, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 疼, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
