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困苦 (kùn kǔ) — (noun) hardship, privation; (stative verb) to be in distress, to live in poverty

Definition

Literary/formal word for severe hardship — both the noun 'hardship, privation' and an adjective describing a difficult life. More elevated than 苦 or 艰难, common in written and rhetorical contexts.

noun
hardshipprivation(stative verb) to be in distressto live in poverty

Examples

  • ，困苦。
    Zài zhàn zhēng nián dài, rén mín guò zhe kùn kǔ de shēng huó.
    During the war years, the people lived a life of hardship.
  • 困苦，。
    Tā yì shēng jīng lì le wú shù kùn kǔ, dàn cóng wèi fàng qì xī wàng.
    He experienced countless hardships in his life, but never gave up hope.
  • 困苦，。
    Suī rán shēng huó kùn kǔ, tā men yī rán lè guān jiān qiáng.
    Although life was hard, they remained optimistic and strong.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

困kùnhardship
苦kǔbitterness

困 suggests difficulty and 苦 suggests hardship, so the two combine to mean distress or privation.

Characters in this word

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

  • 囗囗wéisurround
  • 木木mùwood

困 is drawn as 木 (wood) enclosed by 囗 (surround). The evidence says this was probably the original form of a word meaning 'doorsill'.

Open 困 →

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
艸艸cǎograss
Sound part声符shēngfú
古
古gǔ苦kǔ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The top 艸 shows grass or plants, matching the sense of bitter plants. The bottom 古 gives the sound.

Open 苦 →
Appears in
Abstract ConceptsEmotions & Feelings

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