忧愁 (yōu chóu) — worried, anxious, melancholy | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A quieter, more literary sadness — a lingering melancholy rather than the sharper anxiety of 焦虑 or the daily stress of 烦恼.

adjective

worriedanxiousmelancholy

Examples

忧愁，。
Tā zuì jìn zǒng shì yōu chóu, hǎo xiàng yǒu shén me xīn shì.
She's been worried lately, as if something is on her mind.
忧愁，。
Bié yōu chóu le, yí qiè dōu huì hǎo qǐ lái de.
Don't worry, everything will be fine.
忧愁。
Tā liǎn shàng dài zhe yōu chóu de biǎo qíng.
He wore a worried expression on his face.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

忧 and 愁 both express worry and grief, so together they mean anxious.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

尤

尤yóu忧yōu

Same sound today

The heart part 心 marks a feeling, and 尤 gives the sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

秋心愁

Meaning part形符xíngfú

心心xīnheart

Sound part声符shēngfú

秋

秋qiū愁chóu

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

愁 combines 秋, which gives the sound, with 心, the heart.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Emotions & Feelings

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