迎难而上 (yíng nán ér shàng) — to press on in the face of challenges; to face difficulties head-on

Definition

A four-character chengyu meaning to meet hardship head-on and keep going — a more literary, heroic tone than plain 克服困难. Often used to praise someone's courage or determination.

verb
to press on in the face of challengesto face difficulties head-on

Examples

  • ，迎难而上，。
    Miàn duì zhè chǎng wēi jī, wǒ men yào yíng nán ér shàng, ér bú shì táo bì.
    Facing this crisis, we must press on in the face of difficulties instead of running away.
  • 迎难而上。
    Tā zhè zhǒng yíng nán ér shàng de jīng shén yíng dé le dà jiā de zūn zhòng.
    His spirit of facing difficulties head-on earned everyone's respect.
  • ，迎难而上。
    Chuàng yè de lù shang, yíng nán ér shàng cái néng qǔ dé zuì hòu de chéng gōng.
    On the path of starting a business, only by pressing on in the face of challenges can you achieve ultimate success.

Origin

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
辶Written in full as辵chuò
Sound part声符shēngfú
卬
卬áng迎yíng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

迎 is made of 辶 (written fully as 辵) for the meaning and 卬 for the sound.

Open 迎 →

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 難; 难 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
隹隹zhuībird
Sound part声符shēngfú
暵
暵hàn難nán
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional 難 pairs 隹, a bird, with 暵 for sound, and meant a type of bird. It was later borrowed for other meanings; the modern 难 is a shorthand.

Open 难 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 而 is a picture of a beard.

Open 而 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

上 is drawn as a short horizontal line placed above a longer arc, marking a position above that arc.

Open 上 →

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