哀怨 (āi yuàn) — (stative verb) sad, plaintive; (noun) sorrow, plaintiveness

Definition

哀怨 (āi yuàn) means a quiet, lingering sadness mixed with a sense of grievance — softer and more plaintive than plain 伤心, and typically describes a mood, look, or tone rather than an event.

adjective
(stative verb) sadplaintive
noun
sorrowplaintiveness

Examples

  • 哀怨，。
    Tā de gē shēng hěn āi yuàn, ràng rén tīng le rěn bú zhù liú lèi.
    Her singing is very plaintive, making people can't help crying when listening.
  • 哀怨，。
    Tā yǎn zhōng chōng mǎn le āi yuàn, fǎng fú yǒu shuō bù chū de wěi qu.
    His eyes were full of sorrow, as if there was unspeakable grievance.
  • 哀怨。
    Zhè shǒu shī biǎo dá le shī rén nèi xīn de āi yuàn.
    This poem expresses the poet's inner sadness.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

哀āisad
怨yuànresentment

哀 gives sadness and 怨 gives grievance, so 哀怨 describes a sad, plaintive feeling.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
衣
衣yī哀āi
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

哀 combines 口 (mouth) with 衣 (yī), which gives it its sound.

Open 哀 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
夗
夗wǎn怨yuàn
Same sound today

怨 has 心 (heart) below and 夗 above as a sound part; the heart part shows the meaning concerns feelings.

Open 怨 →

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