Today’s word of the day is 欠 (qiàn) which means ‘to owe’. Let’s practice making different words, phrases, and sentences with 欠 (qiàn).
打哈欠 (dǎ hāqian) Yawn
The first word is 打哈欠 (dǎ hāqian) which means ‘to yawn’. A way of using it in a sentence is: 她今天看起来很困，不停地打哈欠。(Tā jīntiān kàn qǐlái hěn kùn, bù tíng de dǎ hāqian.) She looks sleepy today, she has been yawning non-stop.
欠人情 (qiàn rénqíng) To owe someone a favor
Another word we can create with 欠 (qiàn) is 欠人情 (qiàn rénqíng). This means to owe someone a favor. Let’s look at each part of this word, 欠 means ‘to owe’ and 人情means ‘favor’. When someone does you a big favor, you can reply 我欠你一个人情。(Wǒ qiàn nǐ yīgè rénqíng.) I owe you one.
欠债 (qiàn zhài) To be in debt
Finally, we can create the word 欠债 (qiàn zhài) which means ‘to be in debt’. The 债 here means ‘debt’. A way of using it in a sentence is 为什么当今大学生一毕业就欠债？(Wèishéme dāngjīn dàxuéshēng yī bìyè jiù qiàn zhài?) Why are college students today in debt as soon as they graduate?