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Chinese vocabulary · Beginner
How do you say "to sleep" in Chinese?
睡觉
shuì jiào
In Chinese, "to sleep" is 睡觉.
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Pronunciation
Say shway (falling tone) then jyow (rising tone). First pitch drops, second rises. Sleep is 4 syllables total.
Writing and usage
Two characters combine. 睡 has thirteen strokes with an eye radical (目), showing the connection to closing eyes. 觉 has twelve strokes.
Example sentence
我晚上八点睡觉。
I sleep at 8pm in the evening.
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How to remember 睡觉
The eye radical in 睡 reminds you of closing your eyes to sleep. Picture yourself dozing off.
Related words
- call out 召唤 zhào huàn
- make 做 zuò
- rest 休息 xiū xi
- run 跑 pǎo
- see 看 kàn
- show 展示 zhǎn shì
- sit 坐 zuò
- take off 脱 tuō
- try 尝试 cháng shì
Browse all Chinese words in the glossary.
Questions about 睡觉
How do you say "to sleep" in Chinese?
In Chinese, "to sleep" is 睡觉. It is a noun.
How is 睡觉 written in Chinese?
Two characters combine. 睡 has thirteen strokes with an eye radical (目), showing the connection to closing eyes. 觉 has twelve strokes.
How is 睡觉 used in a sentence?
Use 睡觉 as you would use the equivalent noun in English. For example: 我晚上八点睡觉。 (I sleep at 8pm in the evening.).
Where can I practice Chinese words for free?
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"To sleep" in other languages
Curated by Jack Ratcliffe
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