<p>First off &quot;zhe teng&quot; can not be considered a translation of 折腾, and certainly not <em>the</em> official translation - it is simply just the pronunciation.</p>
<p>A translation of 折腾 really depends on the context, and since you didn't provide any context then you can consider the following definitions and sample sentences and see which fits best:</p>
<p><strong>A Chinese-English Dictionary</strong></p>
<blockquote>
<p>INFORMAL</p>
<p>1 turn from side to side; toss about</p>
<p>他折腾了好几个钟头才睡着。</p>
<p>Tā zhēteng le hǎojǐ ge zhōngtóu cái shuìzháo.</p>
<p>He tossed about in bed for hours before he got to sleep.</p>
<p>2 do sth. over and over again</p>
<p>徒工把旧机器拆了又安, 安了又拆, 折腾了好多回。</p>
<p>Túgōng bǎ jiù jīqì chāi le yòu ān, ān le yòu chāi, zhēteng le hǎoduō huí.</p>
<p>The young apprentice again and again took the old machine apart and then put it together.</p>
<p>3 cause physical or mental suffering; get sb. down</p>
<p>牙疼真折腾人。</p>
<p>Yá téng zhēn zhēteng rén.</p>
<p>A toothache can get you down.</p>
<p>4 spend freely; squander</p>
<p>没多久他就把那份家产折腾光了。</p>
<p>Méi duōjiǔ tā jiù bǎ nà fèn jiāchǎn zhēteng guāng le.</p>
<p>It didn't take him long to squander away his family fortune.</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-10-18T01:53:07.147Z
Is 'get somebody down' from a dictionary? I think example 3 needs more context, for example, the person went to dental service several times for it/ have to prepare liquid food. Otherwise it is surely painful, but may not cause a lot of trouble.
EXL
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-07-10T03:10:47.387Z
2014-07-10T03:21:44.790Z
2020-06-17T09:50:11.587Z
Mou某
<p>I agree with user3306356, it depends on contexts.</p>

<p>For me as a native speaker, the one I used and heard the most means "torture or torturing"
For instance, 您别折腾我了 Literally it means（Please）you stop torturing me. Note: 别...了 is a grammar usage meaning stop doing something.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-07-10T15:10:07.777Z
2014-07-10T15:10:07.777Z
ChineseHulu.com
<p>I don't think the official translation "zhe teng" is a best answer, but I don't know how to translate this word properly.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-07-10T21:49:52.007Z
Maybe you can say "no zuo no die"..lol
moiaussi06
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-07T02:25:53.173Z
It means spending many more meaningless time or much more times on somebody or doing something. It can be a verb, like 这件事折腾了很久, or an adjective, like 这件事很折腾.
xenophōn
<translation>
How to translate “折腾” to English?
# How to translate “折腾” to English?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2014-07-10)

I don't think the official translation "zhe teng" is a best answer, but I don't know how to translate this word properly.

**Tags:** translation

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Maybe you can say "no zuo no die"..lol  
> **username_2**: It means spending many more meaningless time or much more times on somebody or doing something. It can be a verb, like 这件事折腾了很久, or an adjective, like 这件事很折腾.  

---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2014-07-10. Score: 5

First off "zhe teng" can not be considered a translation of 折腾, and certainly not *the* official translation - it is simply just the pronunciation.

A translation of 折腾 really depends on the context, and since you didn't provide any context then you can consider the following definitions and sample sentences and see which fits best:

**A Chinese-English Dictionary**

> INFORMAL
>
> 1 turn from side to side; toss about
>
> 他折腾了好几个钟头才睡着。
>
> Tā zhēteng le hǎojǐ ge zhōngtóu cái shuìzháo.
>
> He tossed about in bed for hours before he got to sleep.
>
> 2 do sth. over and over again
>
> 徒工把旧机器拆了又安, 安了又拆, 折腾了好多回。
>
> Túgōng bǎ jiù jīqì chāi le yòu ān, ān le yòu chāi, zhēteng le hǎoduō huí.
>
> The young apprentice again and again took the old machine apart and then put it together.
>
> 3 cause physical or mental suffering; get sb. down
>
> 牙疼真折腾人。
>
> Yá téng zhēn zhēteng rén.
>
> A toothache can get you down.
>
> 4 spend freely; squander
>
> 没多久他就把那份家产折腾光了。
>
> Méi duōjiǔ tā jiù bǎ nà fèn jiāchǎn zhēteng guāng le.
>
> It didn't take him long to squander away his family fortune.

> **Comments:**
> **username_4**: Is 'get somebody down' from a dictionary? I think example 3 needs more context, for example, the person went to dental service several times for it/ have to prepare liquid food. Otherwise it is surely painful, but may not cause a lot of trouble.  

---

### Answer by username_5 on 2014-07-10. Score: 2

I agree with user3306356, it depends on contexts.

For me as a native speaker, the one I used and heard the most means "torture or torturing"
For instance, 您别折腾我了 Literally it means（Please）you stop torturing me. Note: 别...了 is a grammar usage meaning stop doing something.


---

