混日子

hùnrìzi

verb #24,006

Meanings

1 to muddle through life
2 to idle
3 to kill time aimlessly
4 to go through the motions

Characters

to muddle; to mix; to drift along

suffix (nominalizer)

Examples

HSK 3

他整天混日子，什么正事都不做。

Tā zhěngtiān hùnrìzi, shénme zhèngshì dōu bù zuò.

He muddles through the days, not doing anything productive.

HSK 3

不要只是混日子，要有自己的目标。

Bùyào zhǐshì hùnrìzi, yào yǒu zìjǐ de mùbiāo.

Don't just drift through life - you need to have your own goals.

Tips

usage

混日子 carries a negative connotation, implying a lack of ambition or purpose. It can be self-deprecating ("I'm just killing time at this job") or critical of others. Compare with 过日子, which neutrally means "to get through the days / to live one's life".

Stroke Order

混 hùn

日 rì

子 zǐ