七死八活 seven deaths and eight lives
Explanation
形容人经历了极大的痛苦，如同多次死去活来一般。通常用来描述身处极度痛苦或危险境地，形容人非常难受。
Describes someone who has suffered extreme pain, as if they have died and come back to life multiple times. Often used to describe someone who is in a very painful or dangerous situation, describing how uncomfortable someone is.
Origin Story
在一个炎热夏季的下午，一位名叫李明的年轻小伙子在烈日下辛苦地劳作着。他是一名建筑工人，每天都要在高高的脚手架上，冒着炎炎烈日，挥汗如雨地工作。今天，工地上突然停电，闷热的天气让所有工人都感到心烦意乱。李明站在高高的脚手架上，汗水不停地流淌，衣服已经被汗水浸透了。他感到头晕眼花，全身无力，仿佛要昏倒过去。这时，他突然想起早上出门的时候，妻子给他准备的凉茶，便急忙从工具包里掏出水瓶，打开瓶盖，猛地喝了几口。一股清凉的茶水流入喉咙，李明顿时感到一股清凉的气息从心底涌上来，精神也为之一振。他继续工作，虽然烈日依旧炎炎，但是李明已经没有了之前的痛苦，脸上还露出了开心的笑容。李明感叹道：“幸好有这凉茶，不然我今天真是要七死八活了。”
One hot summer afternoon, a young man named Li Ming was working hard under the scorching sun. He was a construction worker, and every day he had to work on high scaffolding, sweating profusely under the blazing sun. Today, the power suddenly went out on the construction site, and the stuffy weather made all the workers feel irritable. Li Ming stood on the high scaffolding, sweat dripping continuously, his clothes were soaked through with sweat. He felt dizzy, weak, and as if he was about to faint. At this time, he suddenly remembered the cool tea his wife had prepared for him when he went out in the morning, so he hurriedly took out the bottle from his toolbox, opened the lid, and took a few big gulps. A cool stream of tea flowed into his throat, and Li Ming immediately felt a cool breeze flowing up from his heart, and his spirits were lifted. He continued to work, although the sun was still blazing, but Li Ming no longer had the previous pain, and even a smile appeared on his face. Li Ming sighed:
Usage
形容人非常痛苦，濒临死亡，可以用于各种场景，例如生病，疲劳，惊吓等。
To describe someone who is in great pain and close to death, it can be used in various scenarios, such as illness, fatigue, fright, etc.
Examples
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他病得七死八活，医生都束手无策了。
ta bing de qi si ba huo, yi sheng dou shu shou wu ce le.
He was so sick that he was close to death, and the doctor was helpless.
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这几天太累了，我简直是七死八活的。
zhe ji tian tai lei le, wo jian zhi shi qi si ba huo de.
I was so tired these days that I was almost dead.
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这场比赛真是惊险刺激，看得人七死八活的
zhe chang bi sai zhen shi jing xian ci ji, kan de ren qi si ba huo de
This game was so exciting, it was a nail-biter.