任劳任怨 (rèn láo rèn yuàn) — (idiom) to work hard without complaint; to bear hardship and reproach without resentment

Definition

A chengyu describing someone who willingly takes on hard work (任劳) and accepts criticism or blame without complaint (任怨) — emphasizes endurance and dedication.

idiom
to work hard without complaintto bear hardship and reproach without resentment

Examples

  • 任劳任怨,“”。
    Tā zài zhè jiā gōng sī rèn láo rèn yuàn le èr shí nián, cóng méi shuō guò yí gè "bù" zì.
    He has worked hard without complaint at this company for twenty years and never said a single 'no'.
  • 任劳任怨,。
    Wǒ men dōu hěn jìng pèi tā nà zhǒng rèn láo rèn yuàn de jīng shén, fán shì dōu jìn quán lì.
    We all admire her spirit of working hard without complaint; she always gives her best in everything.
  • 任劳任怨,。
    Dāng lǐng dǎo de shǒu xiān dé zuò dào rèn láo rèn yuàn, cái néng ràng dà jiā xīn fú kǒu fú.
    A leader must first be willing to work hard and bear criticism, then others will be genuinely convinced.

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.

任劳bear hardship
任rènbear劳láohardship
动宾Verb + object
任怨bear blame
任rènbear怨yuànblame
动宾Verb + object

任劳 and 任怨 stand side by side, pairing bear with hardship or blame, yielding the idea of working hard without complaint.

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
亻Written in full as人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
壬
壬rén任rèn
Same sound today

任 pairs 亻, a person, with 壬, which may picture a shoulder pole turned sideways.

Open 任 →

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 勞; 劳 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
Sound part声符shēngfú
𬡤
𬡤𬡤勞láo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 勞 uses 力 for the meaning and 𬡤 for the sound; the simplified 劳 is a later shortened shape.

Open 劳 →

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
亻Written in full as人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
壬
壬rén任rèn
Same sound today

任 pairs 亻, a person, with 壬, which may picture a shoulder pole turned sideways.

Open 任 →

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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