sad or distressing matter; source of grief; bitter experience
Refers to a thing, event, or thought that causes sadness, worry, or distress. Often used in literary or reflective contexts.
Life is full of sad and distressing things.
He drank to forget his troubles.
Standard kanji spelling.
Variant spelling without okurigana; less common.
Compound of 憂い (urei, 'sorrow, grief') + 事 (koto, 'thing, matter'), with rendaku voicing to goto. The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the word has been used since classical Japanese to refer to sad or troubling affairs.