also: しょくしょく
taru-adjective, adverb taking the 'to' particle
keenly felt; heart-wrenching; heart-rending
Formal, literary term describing a deeply moving, sorrowful feeling. Used as a taru-adjective or adverb with と.
Hearing his story, a keenly felt sorrow pressed upon my heart.
The poem is filled with a heart-rending melancholy.
Literary kanji form; the repetition mark 々 is standard. 惻惻 is an alternate full-character spelling.
Kana spelling for clarity, as the kanji are rare.
Full-character variant of 惻々.
Alternate reading listed; rare and may be encountered in older texts.
The kanji 惻 means 'sorrow' or 'compassion'. The reduplicated form 惻々 intensifies the meaning, creating a literary expression for deep, heart-rending emotion. The reading そくそく is the standard on'yomi, while しょくしょく is a rare alternate reading.