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苦衷 (kǔ zhōng) — hidden difficulties or grievances; unspoken troubles

Definition

苦衷 (kǔzhōng) refers to hidden difficulties or grievances a person keeps to themselves — the unspoken reasons behind their behavior. It always carries a sense of something private that has not (yet) been voiced.

noun
hidden difficulties or grievancesunspoken troubles

Examples

  • 苦衷，。
    Tā zhè me zuò yí dìng yǒu tā de kǔ zhōng, wǒ men yào duō lǐ jiě.
    He must have his own unspoken difficulties for acting this way; we should try to understand.
  • ，苦衷。
    Lǎo wáng cóng bù tí jiā lǐ de shì, qí shí xīn lǐ yǒu hěn duō kǔ zhōng.
    Lao Wang never talks about family matters; actually he has a lot of hidden worries.
  • ，苦衷。
    Jīng guò yì fān quàn shuō, tā zhōng yú shuō chū le zì jǐ de kǔ zhōng.
    After some persuasion, he finally voiced his long-hidden difficulties.

Origin

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.

苦kǔbitter
衷zhōnginner feelings

苦 adds bitterness, and 衷 points to inner feelings, so the word means hidden troubles.

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
艸艸cǎograss
Sound part声符shēngfú
古
古gǔ苦kǔ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The top 艸 shows grass or plants, matching the sense of bitter plants. The bottom 古 gives the sound.

Open 苦 →

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
衣衣yīclothes
Sound part声符shēngfú
中
中zhōng衷zhōng
Same sound today

The shape of 衷 combines 衣 (clothes) and 中 (middle; center), with 中 giving the sound.

Open 衷 →
Appears in
Abstract Concepts

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