TongTong
Sign in

坚韧 (jiān rèn) — (of material) tough and durable; (of character) tenacious and unyielding

Definition

坚韧 covers BOTH senses: tough physical material AND tenacious character. 顽强 is the closer match for the character sense (fighting spirit); 坚固 and 坚硬 describe only physical hardness, not resolve.

adjective
(of material) tough and durable(of character) tenacious and unyielding
Easily confused

Examples

  • 坚韧，。
    Zhè zhǒng cái liào fēi cháng jiān rèn, kě yǐ chéng shòu hěn dà de yā lì.
    This material is very tough and can withstand great pressure.
  • 坚韧。
    Tā de jiān rèn jīng shén zhí dé wǒ men xué xí.
    His tenacious spirit is worth learning from.
  • 坚韧。
    Tā zài kùn nan miàn qián biǎo xiàn dé shí fēn jiān rèn.
    She behaved very tenaciously in the face of difficulties.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

坚jiānfirm
韧rèntough

坚 gives firmness and 韧 gives toughness, so together they describe something strong and not easily broken.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 堅; 坚 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
土土tǔ
Sound part声符shēngfú
臤
臤qiān堅jiān
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 堅 pairs 臤, giving the sound, with 土, earth, giving the sense; the simplified 坚 is a later shorthand.

Open 坚 →

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 韌; 韧 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
韋韋wéi
Sound part声符shēngfú
刃
刃rèn韌rèn
Same sound today

The traditional form 韌 combines 韋, a meaning part, with 刃, a sound part; the simplified 韧 is a later shorthand.

Open 韧 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Personality & TraitsTexture & Quality

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.