苦 kǔ
- Strokes
- 8
- Radical
- 艹 — grass, weed, plant, herb
- Made of
- 艹 grass, weed, plant, herb 古 old, classic, ancient
- How it's built
- Phono-semantic — one part hints at the meaning, another at the sound
苦难
kǔnàn
suffering; hardship
Characters in this word
难 nán
- Strokes
- 10
- Radical
- 又 — and, also, again, in addition
- Made of
- 又 and, also, again, in addition 隹 short-tailed bird
- How it's built
- Ideograph — the meaning is built from its parts
Example phrases
- 这部小说没有美化苦难，而是追问谁该为受害者负责。 Zhè bù xiǎoshuō méiyǒu měihuà kǔnàn, ér shì zhuīwèn shéi gāi wèi shòuhàizhě fùzé. This novel does not romanticise suffering; instead, it asks who should be held responsible for the victims.
- 这位老人年轻时经历过很多苦难。 Zhè wèi lǎorén niánqīng shí jīnglì guo hěn duō kǔnàn. This old man went through a lot of hardship when he was young.
- 苦难没有打败她，反而让她更坚强。 Kǔnàn méiyǒu dǎbài tā, fǎn'ér ràng tā gèng jiānqiáng. Hardship did not defeat her; it made her stronger.
Related words
- 痛苦 tòngkǔ pain; suffering
- 苦 kǔ bitter
- 艰苦 jiānkǔ hard; difficult
- 酸甜苦辣 suāntiánkǔlà life's joys and hardships
- 辛苦 xīnkǔ hard; tiring
- 吃苦 chīkǔ to endure hardship
- 愁眉苦脸 chóuméikǔliǎn to look worried; to pull a long face
- 何苦 hékǔ why bother; why make things hard for oneself
- 刻苦 kèkǔ hard-working; assiduous
- 苦尽甘来 kǔjìngānlái after suffering comes happiness
- 苦恼 kǔnǎo distressed; troubled
- 苦涩 kǔsè bitter and astringent; bitter