透支

tòuzhī

HSK 7

透支 — tòuzhī

1. to overdraw (an account); to take out an overdraft; (also) an overdraft (banking)

   我把账户透支了，银行要收取透支利息。 wǒ bǎ zhànghù tòuzhī le yínháng yào shōuqǔ tòuzhī lìxī — I overdrawn my account; the bank will charge overdraft interest.

2. to overspend (expenditure in excess of revenue, e.g., a budget or company)

   公司去年透支了预算，所以今年要削减开支。 gōngsī qùnián tòuzhī le yùsuàn suǒyǐ jīnnián yào xuējiǎn kāizhī — The company overspent its budget last year, so it must cut costs this year.

3. (old) to draw one's wage in advance

   旧时工人有时会向庄园主透支工资应付急需。 jiùshí gōngrén yǒushí huì xiàng zhuāngyuánzhǔ tòuzhī gōngzī yìngfù jíxū — In earlier times workers would sometimes draw their wages in advance from the manor owner to meet urgent needs.

4. (figurative) to exhaust (one's energy, enthusiasm etc.); to overuse and thereby damage a resource

   他连续工作几个月，透支了自己的精力，结果住院了。 tā liánxù gōngzuò jǐgè yuè tòuzhī le zìjǐ de jīnglì jiéguǒ zhùyuàn le — He worked continuously for months, exhausted his energy and ended up hospitalized.