How to Say “I am tired” in Chinese
Feelings and opinions · HSK 2
"I am tired" in Chinese is 我累了 (wǒ lèi le). 我累了 (wǒ lèi le) is "I am tired" in the physical-or-mental exhaustion sense. 好累 (hǎo lèi, "so tired") is the exclamatory version.
Primary translation
我累了
wǒ lèi le
Variants by register
Casual
好累
hǎo lèi
When to use it
我累了 (wǒ lèi le) is "I am tired" in the physical-or-mental exhaustion sense. 好累 (hǎo lèi, "so tired") is the exclamatory version. For sleepiness specifically use 困 (kùn, sleepy): 我很困 (I am sleepy). Emotional exhaustion is sometimes 心累 (xīn lèi, "heart-tired"). To describe heavy work: 辛苦了 (xīnkǔ le, "you have worked hard") is the customary thanks for effort. Chinese colleagues frequently exchange 辛苦了 at the end of a workday.
Example sentences
我累了，想睡觉。
Wǒ lèi le, xiǎng shuìjiào.
I am tired, I want to sleep.
今天工作好累。
Jīntiān gōngzuò hǎo lèi.
Work was so exhausting today.
辛苦了，早点休息。
Xīnkǔ le, zǎo diǎn xiūxi.
You have worked hard, rest early.