sweetness and bitterness; joys and sorrows
A literary or formal compound that pairs sweetness with bitterness, often used metaphorically for life's ups and downs. Not an everyday conversational word.
People grow by experiencing the joys and sorrows of life.
この小説は、恋愛の甘苦を描いている。
This novel depicts the sweetness and bitterness of love.
hardships and joys; the sweets and bitters of life
Compound of 甘 (sweet) and 苦 (bitter). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the pairing is a natural metaphor for contrasting experiences.