幽怨 (yōu yuàn) — deep, pent-up sorrow or resentment (often with a plaintive, literary quality)

Definition

幽怨 (yōu yuàn) is a literary, melancholic sadness — sorrow that has been quietly held inside, often with a plaintive or wistful tone, as in poetry or songs. It is more inward and aesthetic than ordinary 悲伤 or 难过.

noun
deeppent-up sorrow or resentment (often with a plaintive, literary quality)

Examples

  • 幽怨。
    Tā de yǎn shén lǐ chōng mǎn le yōu yuàn.
    Her eyes were full of pent-up sorrow.
  • 幽怨。
    Zhè shǒu shī biǎo dá le cí rén nèi xīn shēn chù de yōu yuàn.
    This poem expresses the poet's deepest melancholy.
  • 幽怨，。
    Tā chàng le yì shǒu yōu yuàn de gē, ràng rén tīng hòu jiǔ jiǔ bù néng píng jìng.
    She sang a song full of plaintive sorrow that left people unsettled for a long time.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

幽yōuhidden; deep
怨yuànresentment

The hidden, deep quality in “幽” shapes the resentment in “怨”.

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
山山shān
Sound part声符shēngfú
𢆶
𢆶𢆶幽yōu
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

幽 pairs 山, mountain, with 𢆶 as a sound part.

Open 幽 →

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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