症结 (zhēng jié) — crux of an issue; sticking point; the underlyin…

Definition

Literally 'lump and knot' — 症结 means the root cause of a stuck problem. 难点 is just a general 'difficult point', not a specific blocker.

noun

crux of an issuesticking pointthe underlying cause of a problem(TCM) hard lump in the abdomen

症结。
Tán pàn de zhēng jié shì shuāng fāng dōu bù kěn ràng bù.
The crux of the negotiations is that neither side is willing to compromise.
症结。
Fēn xī shī zhǐ chū le jīng jì wèn tí de zhēng jié.
The analyst pointed out the crux of the economic problem.
，症结。
Yào jiě jué zhè ge wèn tí, bì xū xiān zhǎo dào zhēng jié.
To solve this problem, you must first find its root cause.

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.

症 is illness and 结 is a knot, so the image of an illness knot gives the crux of a problem.

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.

疒正症

Meaning part形符xíngfú

疒疒nèdisease

Sound part声符shēngfú

正

Same sound today

The left part 疒 shows it is about disease. The right part 正 is used for the sound.

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 結; 结 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

糸糸mì

Sound part声符shēngfú

吉

吉jí結jié

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

The traditional form 結 pairs 糸 with 吉; 吉 gives the sound, and 糸 relates to the meaning. The simplified 结 is a later shorthand.

Appears in