Nelly Min

Reader's question:

We all live on borrowed time. We have only one life to live. Are you at your best?

Could you explain "borrowed time"?

My comments:

Borrowed time means a period of uncertainty during which the inevitable consequences of a current situation are postponed or avoided.

Death is an inevitable consequence of life, so we are all living on borrowed time.

For example, terminally ill patients are living on borrowed time; an unstable government that existed for months on borrowed time. A company facing bankruptcy can also continue to operate for months on borrowed time.

If you are the boss and you are going to fire someone, you can say, You are on borrowed time, Ms. Huang.

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About the author:

Nelly Min?is a journalist at the China Daily website.