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苛刻 (kē kè) — harsh, severe, demanding (about conditions, rules, or requirements)

Definition

苛刻 describes harsh, unreasonable conditions, rules, or standards imposed on people. It differs from 严厉 (strict toward behavior/wrongdoing) and 严峻 (grim, serious situations) — 苛刻 focuses on demands being excessive or unfair.

adjective
harshseveredemanding (about conditions, rules, or requirements)

Examples

  • 苛刻，。
    Gōng sī zhì dìng de chéng fá zhì dù guò yú kē kè, yuán gōng pǔ biàn bù mǎn.
    The company's punishment system is too harsh, and employees are generally dissatisfied.
  • 苛刻。
    Zhè wèi kè hù duì zhì liàng jiǎn yàn de biāo zhǔn fēi cháng kē kè.
    This customer's standards for quality inspection are very severe.
  • 苛刻，。
    Zài kē kè de tiáo jiàn xià, tuán duì réng rán wán chéng le rèn wu.
    Under harsh conditions, the team still completed the task.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

苛kēharsh
刻kèsevere

苛 harsh and 刻 severe combine to describe demanding, unkind conditions.

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
艹Written in full as艸cǎo
Sound part声符shēngfú
可
可kě苛kē
Same sound today

The shape 苛 pairs 艹 (grass) with 可 (kě), which gives the sound.

Open 苛 →

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
刂Written in full as刀dāo
Sound part声符shēngfú
亥
亥hài刻kè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

刻 is made of 刂, a form of 刀 (knife), and 亥, which gives the sound.

Open 刻 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Good & Bad

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