noun
hardships and privations; extreme poverty and suffering
A formal, literary yojijukugo describing a state of severe hardship and destitution. Often used in written or rhetorical contexts.
戦後、多くの人々が困苦窮乏の生活を強いられた。
After the war, many people were forced into a life of hardships and privations.
彼の小説は困苦窮乏にあえぐ農民の姿を描いている。
His novel depicts farmers struggling with extreme poverty and suffering.
A yojijukugo composed of 困 (distress), 苦 (suffering), 窮 (hardship), and 乏 (poverty). The exact historical origin is uncertain, but it follows a common pattern of combining synonymous kanji to intensify the meaning.