煞费苦心 (shà fèi kǔ xīn) — to take great pains, to go to great lengths (about doing something)
Definition
A set phrase (chengyu) meaning someone has spent a lot of thought and effort on something difficult. Stronger and more literary than 用心, which just means 'with care.'
verb
to take great painsto go to great lengths (about doing something)
Examples
- ，煞费苦心。Wèi le zhè ge xiàng mù, tā kě yǐ shuō shà fèi kǔ xīn.He can be said to have taken great pains for this project.
- 煞费苦心，。Fù mǔ wèi le hái zi de jiào yù shà fèi kǔ xīn, xī wàng tā men néng yǒu hǎo de wèi lái.Parents take great pains for their children's education, hoping they can have a good future.
- 。Tā wèi le zhè jiàn shì shā fèi le yì fān kǔ xīn.He went to great pains over this matter.
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