How to say “I'm broke” in Chinese
From a little tight to eating dirt
The mildest way to say “I'm broke” in Chinese is 手头紧 (shǒu tóu jǐn), “money's a bit tight”. The strongest is 吃土 (chī tǔ), “eating dirt”. Here are all 5, ranked mild to strong, with pinyin and when to use each one.
手头紧
money's a bit tight
The polite way. You can still afford coffee
囊中羞涩
my wallet is shy
An old idiom. Sounds fancy, means the same thing
月光族
the paycheck-is-gone-by-the-30th club
月光 = moonlight, but here: the month's money, all gone
穷光蛋
totally broke guy
Poor + bare + egg. Use it on yourself, not on others
Heard in real Chinese videos
我，小琳，我是一个穷光蛋。
Me, Xiaolin, I'm flat broke.
小Lin说 on YouTube, at 0:56
吃土
eating dirt
Spent it all online. Dinner is dirt now
Quick answers
- How do you say “I'm broke” in Chinese?
- The mildest way to say “I'm broke” in Chinese is 手头紧 (shǒu tóu jǐn), “money's a bit tight”. The strongest is 吃土 (chī tǔ), “eating dirt”. Here are all 5, ranked mild to strong, with pinyin and when to use each one.
- What is the mildest way to say “I'm broke” in Chinese?
- 手头紧 (shǒu tóu jǐn): money's a bit tight. The polite way. You can still afford coffee.
- What is the strongest way to say “I'm broke” in Chinese?
- 吃土 (chī tǔ): eating dirt. Spent it all online. Dinner is dirt now.
More ways to say it in Chinese
- How to say “cheapskate”小气
- How to say “I'm rich”有钱
- How to say “I'm cooked”糟糕
- How to say slay, the ick and delulu绝绝子
- How to say “spill the tea”聊天
- How to say “that's sus”有点怪
All 47 phrases: feelings, everyday, love and dating, compliments, money, slang, insults, swear words.