熬夜

• Pinyin: áo yè
• Hanzi breakdown: 熬 (endure through) + 夜 (night) -> push through the night awake.

Meaning

To stay up late, often habitually or past a healthy bedtime.

It is a standard word but central to modern youth health jokes and work stress talk. It can imply studying, gaming, scrolling, or overtime.

Examples

1. 别再熬夜了，明天还要早起。 Stop staying up so late. You still have to get up early tomorrow.
2. 考试周大家都在熬夜复习。 During exam week, everyone is staying up late revising.
3. 我一熬夜，第二天状态就差。 If I stay up late, I feel awful the next day.

Usage Guide

Context: health, school, workplace

Tone: concerned, self-mocking

Do Say

• 长期熬夜会影响状态。（Long-term late nights affect your condition.）
• 今晚别熬夜，早点睡。（Do not stay up tonight; sleep early.）

Don't Say

• 把严重失眠简单说成自愿熬夜。（Insomnia is not the same as choosing to stay up.）

Common Mistakes

• Using it for simply sleeping late once; context often implies unhealthy late hours.

Origin & History

Standard Chinese phrase from 熬, "endure/simmer through," and 夜, "night."

Cultural Context

Era: Modern and contemporary

Generation: All generations, especially students and workers

Social background: Broadly used

Regional notes: Common throughout Mainland China.