他們的努力都白費了。

All their efforts were in vain.

Source: Tatoeba

Sentence Composition

1 他們 tāmen they; them
=2 的 de
  1. of; ~'s (possessive particle)
  2. (used after an attribute when it modifies a noun)
  3. (used at the end of a declarative sentence for emphasis)
  4. (used after a noun, verb or adjective to form a nominal expression, as in 皮革的 pígéde "one made of leather" or 跑堂儿的 pǎotángrde "a waiter (literally, one who runs back and forth in a restaurant)" or 新的 xīnde "new one")
  5. also pr. dì or di in poetry and songs
=2 的 dī a taxi; a cab (abbr. for 的士 dīshì)
=2 的 dí really and truly
=2 的 dì (bound form) bull's-eye; target
3 努力 nǔlì
  1. to make an effort; to try hard; to strive
  2. hard-working; conscientious
=4 都 Dū surname Du
=4 都 dōu
  1. all; both; entirely
  2. (used for emphasis) even
  3. already
  4. (not) at all
=4 都 dū
  1. capital city
  2. metropolis
5 白費 báifèi to waste (one's energy etc)
=6 了 le
  1. (completed action marker)
  2. (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now)
  3. (modal particle intensifying preceding clause)
=6 了 liǎo
  1. to finish
  2. (used with 得 dé or 不 bù after a verb to express (im)possibility, as in 忘不了 wàngbuliǎo "cannot forget")
  3. (literary) (usually followed by a negative such as 无 wú or 不 bù) completely (not); entirely (not); (not) in the least
  4. to understand clearly (variant of 了 liǎo)
=6 了 liǎo
  1. (of eyes) bright
  2. clear-sighted
  3. to understand clearly
=6 了 liào unofficial variant of 瞭 liào