寒窗 (hán chuāng) — (idiom) the years of hard study in poverty; the…

Definition

Idiom for the long years of studying in poverty, often in the phrase 寒窗苦读. Used in writing to evoke the hardship of a scholar's path to success.

idiom

the years of hard study in povertythe difficulties of a poor student persevering in their studies

寒窗，。
Jīng guò shí nián hán chuāng, tā zhōng yú kǎo shàng le lǐ xiǎng de dà xué.
After ten years of hard study in poverty, he finally got into his dream university.
寒窗，。
hán chuāng Kǔ dú de rì zi suī rán xīn kǔ, dàn hěn zhí dé.
The days of hard study under difficult conditions, though tough, were well worth it.
，寒窗。
Tā chū shēn pín hán, quán píng hán chuāng huàn lái jīn tiān de chéng jiù.
He came from a poor family and achieved today's success entirely through years of hard study.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

The phrase combines 寒 (cold) and 窗 (window), evoking hard study in a cold room.

Characters in this word

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

寒 shows 宀 (house), 人 (person), and 茻 (grass): a person sleeping in grass inside a house to keep out the cold.

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

穴囱窗

窗 combines 穴 (hole) with 囱 (window), giving the sense of an opening used as a window.