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患难 (huàn nàn) — hardship; adversity; trials and tribulations

Definition

A literary, set-phrase noun for 'hardship and adversity,' used almost only in fixed collocations like 患难夫妻 or 共患难. Unlike everyday 困难, it emphasizes shared suffering and tests of character.

noun
hardshipadversitytrials and tribulations

Examples

  • 患难，。
    Tā men shì yí duì huàn nàn fū qī, gǎn qíng fēi cháng shēn hòu.
    They are a couple who have weathered hardships together, and their bond is very deep.
  • 患难。
    Zhēn zhèng de péng you zài huàn nàn zhōng cái néng kàn chū lái.
    True friends can only be recognized in times of adversity.
  • 患难。
    Tā men yì qǐ dù guò le hěn duō huàn nàn.
    They have gone through many hardships together.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

患huànhardship
难nándisaster

"患" and "难" both refer to trouble or disaster, so together they mean adversity.

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
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
串
串chuàn患huàn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

患 is made from 心, a heart, plus 串, which gives the sound. Some old explanations also read the upper part as piercing through the heart.

Open 患 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 難; 难 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
隹隹zhuībird
Sound part声符shēngfú
暵
暵hàn難nán
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional 難 pairs 隹, a bird, with 暵 for sound, and meant a type of bird. It was later borrowed for other meanings; the modern 难 is a shorthand.

Open 难 →
Appears in
Abstract Concepts

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