惨淡 (cǎn dàn) — gloomy, bleak, dismal; (in 惨淡经营) painstaking, a… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Literary 'gloomy, dismal' — for skies, business, prospects — stronger than 暗淡 and more literary than 凄凉. Also used in 惨淡经营 for painstaking, hard-won effort.

adjective

gloomybleakdismal(in 惨淡经营) painstakingarduous (effort)

Examples

惨淡，。
Zhè jiā xiǎo diàn shēng yì cǎn dàn, kuài yào guān mén le.
This small shop's business is dismal; it's about to close.
惨淡，。
Tiān kōng cǎn dàn, xiàng shì yào xià dà yǔ le.
The sky is gloomy, as if a heavy rain is coming.
惨淡，。
Tā cǎn dàn jīng yíng le shí nián, zhōng yú bǎ gōng sī zuò dà le.
He managed painstakingly for ten years and finally grew the company.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

The 惨 'gloomy' and 淡 'pale' together give a dismal bleakness.

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 慘; 惨 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

心心xīnheart

Sound part声符shēngfú

參

參cān慘cǎn

Same sound today

The traditional form 慘 puts 心 (heart) with 參 as its sound part. The simplified 惨 is a later shorthand, so its shape is not the historical form.

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

氵炎淡

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

炎

炎yán淡dàn

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

淡 puts 氵 (water) beside 炎, which gives the sound yán.

Appears in

Emotions & Feelings Good & Bad

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