断气

斷氣

duànqì

verb #18,865

Meanings

1 to breathe one's last
2 to die
3 to stop breathing

Characters

to break; to cut off

Literally 'cut off breath' — to stop breathing.

Examples

送到医院的时候，他已经断气了。

Sòng dào yīyuàn de shíhou, tā yǐjīng duànqì le.

By the time he was taken to the hospital, he had already breathed his last.

老人在睡梦中安静地断了气。

Lǎorén zài shuìmèng zhōng ānjìng de duàn le qì.

The old man passed away quietly in his sleep.

Tips

register

断气 is fairly direct and blunt about death — it literally describes breathing stopping. More euphemistic alternatives include 去世 (to pass away) or 走了 (gone). In casual speech it can also be used hyperbolically: 热得快断气了 (so hot I could die).

Stroke Order

断 duàn

气 qì