Chinese phrases
How to say lonely in Chinese
Lonely in Chinese is 孤独 (gū dú) for a deep loneliness, 寂寞 (jì mò) for empty hours with no one around, and 孤单 (gū dān) for being on your own.
孤独
lonely (deep)
Ways to say lonely
孤独
Everydaylonely (deep)
A deep loneliness, as if no one understands you. It can also be a choice: 享受孤独 means “to enjoy being alone.”
寂寞
Everydaylonely; empty
The empty feeling of long evenings with no one to talk to. It is the loneliness of love songs, and it can hint at missing a partner.
孤单
Everydayalone and lonely
Being on your own without company: 一个人在外地，很孤单, “alone in another city, and lonely.” Lighter than 孤独.
一个人
Everydayon my own
Just the fact, with no sadness in it: 我一个人住, “I live alone.”
没人陪
With friendsno one to keep me company
The spoken way to say you feel lonely: 周末没人陪我, “I have no one to spend the weekend with.”
想家
Everydayhomesick
Lonely for home, for students and anyone who lives far from family: 我有点想家.
Common mistakes
我很孤独 for “I live alone”
孤独 is heavy. 我很孤独 sounds like a confession of deep sadness. To say you live or travel alone, say 我一个人住 or 我一个人来的.
寂寞 with someone you just met
寂寞 is a private word, close to the loneliness of love songs. 我很寂寞 to someone you just met says too much, and it can sound like flirting. 有点孤单 or 没人陪我 is lighter.
After the weekend
你周末干什么了？
Dengdeng: What did you do at the weekend?
一个人在家，有点孤单。
Leon: I stayed home alone. I felt a bit lonely.
下次叫我啊！我们一起吃饭。
Dengdeng: Call me next time! We’ll eat together.
