TongTong
Sign in

负担 (fù dān) — (verb) to bear (a cost, responsibility, etc.); (noun) burden

Definition

负担 is both a noun ('burden, load') and a verb ('to bear, shoulder'), used for costs, responsibilities, and figurative pressure. Unlike 担负 (more formal/abstract 'to undertake a duty'), 负担 stresses the weight itself, not the act of taking it on.

verb
to bear (a cost, responsibility, etc.)
noun
burden

Examples

  • 负担。
    Fù mǔ fù dān le wǒ de xué fèi.
    My parents bore my tuition fees.
  • 负担，。
    Zhè ge fù dān tài zhòng le, wǒ shòu bù liǎo.
    This burden is too heavy; I can't bear it.
  • 负担。
    Tā bù xiǎng fù dān tài duō zé rèn.
    He doesn't want to bear too much responsibility.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

负fùcarry on the back
担dāncarry on the shoulder

负 means carry on the back and 担 means carry on the shoulder, so the pair names a burden.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 負; 负 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 負 combines 人 (person) and 貝 (cowry), with 人 written as ⺈; the simplified 负 is a later abbreviation.

Open 负 →

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
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
旦
旦dàn担dàn
Same sound today

In 担, the left part 扌 is the hand, showing that the action involves using the hand. The right part 旦 shows how it sounds.

Open 担 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 6Abstract Concepts5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

Browse more HSK 5 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.