Satisfaction over a meal

How to express the right level of satisfaction over a meal is very important in Chinese culture. In this article I am going to explain the difference between ‘我吃撑了’(wǒ chī chēng le), ‘我吃饱了’(wǒ chī bǎo le)and ‘我吃好了’(wǒ chī hǎo le).

‘我吃撑了’(wǒ chī chēng le) which means ‘I am bursting’, is used after a very tasty meal and you can’t eat anymore because you are overloaded with food.

‘我吃饱了’(wǒ chī bǎo le) which means ‘I am full’, is used when you have had enough food to eat and are quite satisfied.

‘我吃好了’(wǒ chī hǎo le) which means ‘I’m good’, is used after a good meal and you are fairly satisfied.