gwo3 lou4過勞过劳
Jyutpinggwo3 lou4
Yalegwo lòuh
Definition
To overwork, leading to physical discomfort or illness from excessively long working hours.
colloquialworkhealth
How it's used
Focuses specifically on the physical and mental exhaustion resulting from excessive work hours. It is often used as a warning to friends or colleagues who are pushing themselves too hard. Unlike formal descriptions of burnout, this term carries a sense of immediate concern for someone's health.
Examples
He has been working overtime a lot lately, and ended up getting sick from overwork.
Don't push yourself too hard at work, be careful of overworking.
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with 疲倦, which simply means being tired. 過勞 implies a serious, chronic state of exhaustion caused by overworking, not just needing a nap after a long day.
Grammar color guide
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Grammar guides
- In 30 secondsThe whole language at a glance. No tenses, no plurals, six tones, sentence particles. Read this before you dive into any specific topic.
- ParticlesSentence particles add tone, emotion, and nuance. Learn the most common particles in Cantonese and how to use them.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
