艱
difficult, trying, be distressed, parent's funeral ceremony, mourning, perilous
Readings
On'yomi
- カン
- ケン
Kun'yomi
- なや.む
- かた.い
- なや.み
Meaning
艱 centers on severe hardship: something difficult, trying, or perilous. The meanings related to a parent's funeral ceremony and mourning are specific cultural applications of deep distress.
Most common words using 艱
- 時艱じかん
problems that affect a period of time; hardships peculiar to an age; hard problems of the times
- 艱苦かんく
hardship; suffering; privation; adversity
- 艱難かんなん
hardships; privations; difficulties
- 艱難汝を玉にすかんなんなんじをたまにす
hardship makes the man
- 艱難苦労かんなんくろう
trials and tribulations; adversities; suffering hardships and troubles
- 艱難辛苦かんなんしんく
trial and tribulation; hardships; privations; difficulties
- 辛苦艱難しんくかんなん
trials and tribulations; adversities; suffering hardships and troubles
Study
Etymology
艱 combines a left side related to hardship or difficulty with 艮, which likely contributes a phonetic element. The exact historical development of the left component is uncertain.
Meaning mnemonic
The left side looks like a person struggling under a heavy load, and the right side 艮 resembles a stubborn obstacle. Together they show someone facing a difficult, trying situation.
Reading mnemonic
For カン, imagine a person enduring a difficult ordeal inside a can: can -> カン, and the can represents the hardship they cannot escape.