How common it is
去世 appears often in everyday Chinese, so it is worth practicing early and reviewing often.
Pronunciation focus
Say qùshì slowly first, then repeat it in a short phrase. Listen for the tone shape.
Usage note
“去世”表示一个人永远离开了，不再和我们一起生活。
“Qùshì” biǎoshì yī ge rén yǒngyuǎn líkāi le, bú zài hé wǒmen yìqǐ shēnghuó.
“Pass away” means a person has left forever and no longer lives with us.
Context note
当我们说一位亲人或朋友去世时，通常会感到很伤心，但也要记得他们曾经带来的快乐。
Dāng wǒmen shuō yī wèi qīnrén huò péngyou qùshì shí, tōngcháng huì gǎndào hěn shāngxīn, dàn yě yào jìde tāmen céngjīng dàilái de kuàilè.
When we say a family member or friend has passed away, we usually feel very sad, but we should also remember the happiness they once brought.
5 examples
爷爷去年去世了，我很想念他。
yé ye qù nián qù shì le， wǒ hěn xiǎng niàn tā。
My grandpa passed away last year, and I miss him very much.
她最心爱的小鸟去世了，她哭了一整天。
tā zuì xīn ài de xiǎo niǎo qù shì le， tā kū le yì zhěng tiān。
Her favorite little bird passed away, and she cried all day.
邻居家的老猫安详地去世了。大家都很难过。
lín jū jiā de lǎo māo ān xiáng dì qù shì le。 dà jiā dōu hěn nán guò。
The neighbor’s old cat passed away peacefully. Everyone was very sad.
他的太奶奶去世时已经九十九岁了。她活得很久。
tā de tài nǎi nai qù shì shí yǐ jīng jiǔ shí jiǔ suì le。 tā huó dé hěn jiǔ。
When his great-grandma passed away, she was already ninety-nine years old. She lived a long time.
那朵花去世了，花瓣落了一地。
nà duǒ huā qù shì le， huā bàn luò le yí dì。
That flower passed away, and its petals fell all over the ground.
5 mini stories
奶奶去世了，但她留下的苹果树还在开花。天天都会想起她。
nǎi nǎi qù shì le， dàn tā liú xià de píng guǒ shù hái zài kāi huā。 tiān tiān dōu huì xiǎng qǐ tā。
Grandma passed away, but the apple tree she left behind still blooms. I think of her every day.
小金鱼去世后，小明把它埋在花园里。那里现在开满了小花。
xiǎo jīn yú qù shì hòu， xiǎo míng bǎ tā mái zài huā yuán lǐ。 nà lǐ xiàn zài kāi mǎn le xiǎo huā。
After the little goldfish passed away, Xiao Ming buried it in the garden. Now lots of little flowers bloom there.
老师告诉我们，太爷爷去世了，但我们要坚强。我们为他画了一幅画。
lǎo shī gào sù wǒ men， tài yé ye qù shì le， dàn wǒ men yào jiān qiáng。 wǒ men wèi tā huà le yì fú huà。
The teacher told us that our great-grandpa passed away, but we should be strong. We drew a picture for him.
那只流浪猫去世前被大家照顾得很好。它走得很安详。
nà zhī liú làng māo qù shì qián bèi dà jiā zhào gù dé hěn hǎo。 tā zǒu dé hěn ān xiáng。
The stray cat was well taken care of by everyone before it passed away. It left very peacefully.
那棵老树去世了，倒在地上。但孩子们在它的旁边种了一棵新树。
nà kē lǎo shù qù shì le， dǎo zài dì shàng。 dàn hái zi men zài tā de páng biān zhǒng le yì kē xīn shù。
The old tree passed away and fell to the ground. But the children planted a new tree next to it.