废寝忘食

fèi qǐn wàng shí

HSK 3.0 Level 7 Rare

Definitions

1. to neglect sleep and forget about food (idiom)
2. to skip one's sleep and meals
3. to be completely wrapped up in one's work

Word relationships

Related words

3 items

• 夜以继日 yè yǐ jì rì 夜以继日 yè yǐ jì rì night and day (idiom); continuous strenuous effort 形容日夜不停地工作或学习: night and day (idiom); continuous strenuous effort
• 不眠不休 bù mián bù xiū 不眠不休 bù mián bù xiū without stopping to sleep or have a rest (idiom) 形容不睡觉不休息地持续做某事: without stopping to sleep or have a rest (idiom)
• 全神贯注 quán shén guàn zhù 全神贯注 quán shén guàn zhù to concentrate one's attention completely (idiom) 形容注意力高度集中: to concentrate one's attention completely (idiom)

Synonyms

1 item

• 专心致志 zhuān xīn zhì zhì 专心致志 zhuān xīn zhì zhì with single-hearted devotion (idiom) 形容非常专注地做某事: with single-hearted devotion (idiom)

Usage notes

Collocations

Often used with verbs like 工作 or 学习 to describe being absorbed in work or study, e.g., 他废寝忘食地工作。

Common mistakes

This idiom is for positive absorption, not neglect of duty; don't use for irresponsible behavior like 他废寝忘食地玩游戏.

Example Sentences

1 shown

他 废寝忘食 地学习，终于考上了大学。

He studied so hard that he neglected sleep and meals, and finally got into university.

AI-generated examples are marked with this icon.

Child Words of 废寝忘食

• 废 废 fèi: to abolish
• 忘 忘 wàng: to forget
• 寝 寝 qǐn: to lie down
• 食 食 shí: to eat
• 食 食 sì: to feed (a person or animal)