📖 Meaning
Describes a person who is plagued by numerous ailments all over the body, constantly unwell. It conveys chronic poor health with frequent recurring symptoms rather than a single specific illness.
📜 Origin Story
This phrase originates from the Qing dynasty novel 'Dream of the Red Chamber' (红楼梦) by Cao Xueqin, appearing in Chapter 102. A character laments that her own body is perpetually afflicted with various ailments, and that her sister-in-law similarly suffers from poor health, being well one day and unwell the next. The expression vividly captures the experience of chronic, all-over bodily illness and discomfort.
💡 Example Usage
自从大病一场后，她便十病九痛，再也干不了重活。
After a serious illness, she became plagued by constant ailments and could no longer do heavy work.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 十病九痛
- Pinyin: shí bìng jiǔ tòng
- Literal Translation: ten illness nine pain
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4