疯 fēng crazy
crazy; insane; mentally ill
How to remember 疯: 疒 illness + 风 wind = crazy. Stuck in bed with an illness, the boy hears the wind howling all night and groans that it drives him crazy.
Component breakdown
疯 = 疒 illness + 风 wind
- 疒 illness
- 风 wind
Stuck in bed with an illness, the boy hears the wind howling all night and groans that it drives him crazy.
How it is used
- Free adjective meaning "crazy": 你疯了吗？(Nǐ fēng le ma?) - "Are you out of your mind?" is everyday spoken Chinese.
- 疯狂 (fēngkuáng) is the more formal/intense written form, used for "crazy, frenzied" behavior or trends (疯狂购物 "crazy shopping spree").
- 疯子 (fēngzi) "madman/lunatic" is a blunt, sometimes rude term - don't use it lightly about real people.
- Casual register throughout; in formal writing prefer 精神失常 or 疯狂 over bare 疯.