拼命

pīnmìng

adverb HSK 7 #4,117

Meanings

Tā pīnmìng de pǎo, zhōngyú gǎnshàng le gōngjiāochē.

He ran desperately and finally caught the bus.

Tā pīnmìng gōngzuò lái yǎnghuó jiārén.

She works with all her might to support her family.

Bié pīnmìng le, shēntǐ zuì zhòngyào.

Don't push yourself so hard; health is most important.

memory

拼 (to go all out) + 命 (life) = literally 'betting one's life,' meaning to do something with desperate effort.

usage

Can be used as an adverb (拼命跑 = run desperately) or a verb (他在拼命 = he's going all out). The tone can be admiring or cautionary.

拼 pīn

命 mìng