感冒 gǎnmào — to catch a cold; a cold
gǎnmào (third tone, dipping)gan3mao4
to catch a cold; a cold
HSK 3· HSK 1–4 (classic)verbnoun
Meanings
to catch a cold; a cold
The common cold, treated in Chinese as something you *do* rather than something you have: 我感冒了. Adding 有 is the usual learner slip.
verb
Example sentences
- 我感冒了，今天不去上班。Wǒ (third tone, dipping) gǎnmào (third tone, dipping) le, (neutral tone) jīntiān (first tone, high and level) bú (second tone, rising) qù (fourth tone, falling) shàngbān. (fourth tone, falling)···
I’ve caught a cold, so I’m not going to work today.
- 天气冷，小心别感冒。天氣冷，小心別感冒。Tiānqì (first tone, high and level) lěng, (third tone, dipping) xiǎoxīn (third tone, dipping) bié (second tone, rising) gǎnmào. (third tone, dipping)···
It’s cold out — take care not to catch a chill.
Common mistakes
Not quite我有感冒。
Correct我感冒了。
Illness words like 感冒, 发烧 and 生病 are verbs in Chinese. Say 我感冒了, with 了 marking the change of state; 有 belongs with nouns.