折腾

zhēteng

HSK 7

折腾 — zhēteng

1. to toss from side to side (e.g. sleeplessly)

   他病了几天一直在床上折腾，睡不着。 tā bìng le jǐtiān yìzhí zài chuángshàng zhēteng shuìbùzhe — He was sick and tossed about in bed for days, couldn't sleep.

2. to do something again and again; to repeat an action (often unnecessarily)

   别折腾了，试一次就够了。 bié zhēteng le shì yīcì jiù gòu le — Stop messing about/repeating it; once is enough.

3. to torment or harass someone; to put someone through a hard time

   别老折腾孩子，让他安静吃饭。 bié lǎo zhēteng háizi ràng tā ānjìng chīfàn — Don't keep bothering the child; let him eat in peace.

4. to play crazy; to act up

   他喝多了就开始折腾，大家都笑他。 tā hē duō le jiù kāishǐ zhēteng dàjiā dōu xiào tā — When he drinks too much he starts fooling around; everyone laughs at him.

5. to squander or waste (time, money, energy)

   别把时间都折腾在没用的事情上。 bié bǎ shíjiān dōu zhēteng zài méiyòng de shìqíng shàng — Don't waste all your time on useless things.