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难处 (nán chù) — difficulty; trouble; problem

Definition

难处 (nánchu) refers to the specific personal troubles or hardships someone faces. Where 困难 describes general difficulty, 难处 highlights a person's particular problems.

noun
difficultytroubleproblem

Examples

  • 难处。
    Zài gōng zuò zhōng wǒ men yù dào le hěn duō nán chù.
    We encountered many difficulties at work.
  • 难处。
    Tā cóng lái bú xiàng bié rén sù shuō zì jǐ de nán chù.
    He never tells others about his troubles.
  • 难处。
    Měi gè jiā tíng dōu yǒu gè zì de nán chù.
    Every family has its own problems.

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.

难nándifficult
处chùplace

难 means difficult and 处 means situation or place; a difficult situation is trouble.

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 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 →

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 處; 处 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
夂夂zhǐ
几几jǐtable
Sound part声符shēngfú
虍
虍hū處chǔ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 處 pairs 虍, giving the sound, with 夂 and 几, a table, as meaning parts. The simplified 处 is a shorthand and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 处 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Abstract Concepts

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.