60 Chinese words for death
A grim but interesting topic! I found this list of various Chinese words for death organised into different categories and I’ve roughly translated it here with a few additions.
Note that a lot of the terms here are very formal, archaic or otherwise inappropriate. This is not a list of appropriate words to use in real-life situations!
Status / rank
This is an archaic hierarchy of words for death based on the rank or status of the person who died. Modern Chinese hasn’t kept these distinctions.
- 驾崩 (jiàbēng) - death of a king or emperor
- 薨 (hōng) - death of a prince
- 卒 (zú) - death of a scholar official
- 逝 (shì) - death of a normal official
- 不禄 (búlù) - death of a member of the ministerial / scholarly class
- 死 (sǐ) - death of a commoner
Age
- 夭折 (yāozhé) - death in childhood
- 下殇 (xiàshāng) - death aged eight to eleven
- 中殇 (zhōngshāng) - death aged twelve to fifteen
- 上殇 (shàngshāng) - death aged sixteen to nineteen
Another two words that generally refer to death in old age:
- 与世长辞 (yǔshìchángcí)
- 仙逝 (xiānshì)
Special reasons or circumstances
- 殉职 (xùnzhí) - to die in the line of duty
- 殉国 (xùnguó) - to die for one’s country
- 殉情 (xùnqíng) - to die for love
- 殉道 (xùndào) - to die for one’s beliefs
- 殉节 (xùnjié) - to die for one’s moral integrity
- 殉难 (xùnnán) - to sacrifice oneself in disaster
Religion
- 圆寂 (yuánjì) - death of a Buddhist monk or nun
- 涅槃 (nièpán) - nirvana
- 坐化 (zuòhuà) - to die whilst sitting cross-legged (Buddhism term)
- 灭度 (mièdù) - “to extinguish worries” - another term for nirvana
- 仙游 (xiānyóu) - “immortal roaming”
- 登山 (dēngshān) - “to climb the mountain”
- 骑鹤 (qíhè) - “to ride a crane”
- 归西 (guīxī) - “to return west” (can be combined into 骑鹤归西 )
Literary terms and euphemisms
- 自尽 (zìjìn) - “to end oneself”
- 投井 (tóujǐng) - “to throw oneself in a well” (may be literal or metaphoric)
- 寻短见 (xúnduǎnjiàn) - “to seek suicide”
- 命绝 (mìngjué) - “life is cut off”
- 升天 (shēngtiān) - “to ascend to heaven”
- 断气 (duànqì) - “to sever qi”
- 命归黄泉 (mìng guī huáng quán) - “one’s life returns to the Yellow Springs”
- 归山道 (guī shāndào) - “to return to the mountain path”
- 上天 (shàngtiān) - “to ascend to Heaven” - religious euphemism for death
- 归天 (guītiān) - “to return to Heaven” - as above
- 见上帝 (jiàn Shàngdì) - “to see God” - another religious one
- 见马克思 (jiàn Mǎkèsī) - “to see Marx” - socialist euphemism for death! (but actually just a joke)
- 离开我们 (líkāi wǒmen) - “to leave us” - general euphemism
- 走了 (zǒu le) - “to leave” - informal general euphemism
- 入冥室 (rù míngshì) - “to enter the dark room”
Judgemental terms
- 牺牲 (xīshēng) - to sacrifice oneself
- 就义 (jiùyì) - to die a righteous death
- 见阎王 (jiàn Yán Wáng) - “to see the King of Hell”
- 下地狱 (xià Dìyù) - “to descend to Hell”
- 得到应得的下场 (dédào yīngdé de xiàchǎng) - “to get one’s [just deserts](http://www.snopes.com/language/notthink/deserts.asp “The word “desert” — with one S — also refers to a deserved reward or punishment.")”
- 完蛋 (wándàn) - “to be finished”
- 蹬腿 (dēngtuǐ) - “to stretch out one’s legs”
- 一命呜呼 (yímìngwūhū) - “one’s life in a word”
- 见鬼去 (jiànguǐ qù) - “to go see a ghost” (similar to “go to hell”, often just an insult)
- 翘辫子 (qiào biànzi) - “to have one’s queue raised” (i.e. by an executioner - similar to “kick the bucket”)
