Untranslatable wordEverydayChinese

Chōu kōng

Meaning: To steal a moment of escape from a hectic schedule — finding a sliver of free time and using it to rest, breathe, or do something just for yourself.

Literally: Steal empty / steal space

Origin: Mandarin 抽空; chōu ('to extract/steal') + kōng ('empty/space').

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