起早贪黑
qǐ zǎo tān hēi
to work from dawn till dark
Character by character
起qǐ
rise
rise
早zǎo
early
early
贪tān
covet
covet
黑hēi
dark
dark
Example
为了还房贷，夫妻俩起早贪黑地经营一家早餐店。
To pay off their mortgage, the couple run a breakfast shop from dawn till dusk.
Tone: positive (praise).
Usage and origin
Spoken and warm: said of hard-working small traders, farmers and parents. 贪黑 is “greedy for the dark”, staying at work into the night. Close to 起早摸黑 and to 披星戴月 (lesson 3-10), which is more literary.
Learn this in Lesson 181 · HSK 7–9: 流水线上 (On the assembly line)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. This lesson is free.
Open the lesson →