難[难] nán
adjective
: difficult; problem; not good
難[难] nàn
noun
: disaster; distress; to scold
Kun Reading
かたい katai
auxiliary adjective
: difficult; hard
にくい nikui
auxiliary adjective
: difficult; hard
むずかしい muzukashii
adjective
: difficult; hard; troublesome; complicated; serious (disease, problem, etc.)
: fussy; particular; fastidious; hard to please; displeased
: gloomy; glum; sullen; serious (look)
: (Archaism) dirty; unclean; filthy; detestable
: (Archaism) unpleasant; uncomfortable; creepy; spooky
On Reading
なんnan
noun
: difficulty; hardships; defect
難受 nan2shou4: to feel unwell; difficult to bear
難吃 nan2chi1: unpalatable
難喝 nan2he1: unpleasant to drink
難看 nan2kan4: ugly; unsightly
難忘 nan2wang4: unforgettable
難事 nan2shi4: tickler [なんじ nanji: difficulty]
難過[难过] nan2guo4: sadden
難道 nan2dao4: don’t tell me…; could it be that…?
難怪 nan2guai4: no wonder…
難以 nan2yi4: hard to (predict/imagine)
難題[难题] nan2ti2: difficult problem/question [なんだい nandai: difficult problem; challenge]
出難題 chu1 nan2ti2: to raise a tough question
艱難 jian1nan2: difficult; challenging [かんなん kannan: hardships; privations]
爲難[为难] wei2nan2: to feel embarrased/awkward; to make things difficult (for someone)
兩難[两难] liang3nan2: dilemma; quandary
難兄難弟 nan2xiong1 nan2di4: hard to differentiate between elder and younger brother: one is just as bad as the other
難民 nan4min2: refugee [なんみん nanmin]
難民營[营] nan4 min2ying2: refugee camp
難點[难点] nan4dian3: difficulty [難点 | なんてん nanten: fault; weakness]
難兄難弟 nan4xiong1 nan4di4: brothers in hardship: fellow sufferers (in the same boat)
災難[灾难] zai1nan4: disaster; catastrophe [さいなん sainan: calamity; misfortune]
苦難 ku3nan4: suffering [くなん kunan: hardship; trial]
避難 bi4nan4: take refuge; seek asylum [ひなん hinan]
遇難 yu4nan4: to perish; to be killed
Japanese Expression
災難に遭う | さいなんにあう sainan ni ou: to meet with misfortune (godan with ru ending)
[どうも] 有難う | [どうも] ありがとう [domo] arigatou [+ ございます gozaimasu]: Thank You [+ polite]
有難い | ありがたい arigatai: grateful; thankful; welcome; appreciated; evoking gratitude
有難味 | ありがたみ arigatami: value; worth; virtue; blessing
人生行路難し | じんせいこうろかたし jinsei kouro katashi: Life is not easy
Chinese idiom
難以啟齒 [难以启齿] nan2 yi3 qi3 chi3
: to be too embarrassed to mention something: to find it hard to speak about something
一言難盡 [一言难尽] yi1 yan2 nan2 jin4
: hard to explain in a few words: complicated and not easy to express succinctly
人心難測 ren2 xin1 nan2 ce4
: hard to fathom a person’s mind
千載難逢 [千载难逢] qian1 zai3 nan2 feng2
: extremely rare: once in a blue moon
可共患難 ke3 gong4 huan4 nan4
: to go through thick and thin together
在所難免 zai4 suo3 nan2 mian3
: to be unavoidable
左右兩難 zuo3 you4 liang3 nan2
: dilemma; quandary; Scylla and Charybdis: between the devil and the deep blue sea
一言既出，駟馬難追 yi1 yan2 ji4 chu1 , si4 ma3 nan2 zhui1
: once said, a team of horses cannot unsay it (idiom); a promise must be kept
君子一言，駟馬難追 jun1 zi3 yi1 yan2 , si4 ma3 nan2 zhui1
: a nobleman’s word is his bond
天下無難事，只怕有心人 tian1 xia4 wu2 nan2 shi4 , zhi3 pa4 you3 xin1 ren2
: nothing is difficult on this earth, if your mind is set
家家有本難念的經 jia1 jia1 you3 ben3 nan2 nian4 de5 jing1
: Every family has its own problems
有福同享，有難同當 you3 fu2 tong2 xiang3 , you3 nan4 tong2 dang1
: To enjoy blessings and endure misfortune together: for better or for worse
江山易改，本性難移 jiang1 shan1 yi4 gai3 , ben3 xing4 nan2 yi2
: it is easier to change mountains and rivers than to alter one’s character: you can’t change who you are
英雄難過美人關 ying1 xiong2 nan2 guo4 mei3 ren2 guan1
: even heroes have a weakness for the charms of a beautiful woman
形声 Pictophonetic.
堇 (jin1: yellow loam) suggest the meaning
隹 (zhui1: short-tailed bird/dove radical 172) while provides the sound.
簡體 Simplified
难
Created as generic character simplification #79 (難 » 难) via replacement of character component.
nb:
艱 (jian1: difficult) the RH element is 艮 (gen3: stubborn).
難 (nan2: difficult) the RH element is 隹 (zhui1: dove)
不要為難我！
bu4yao4 wei2nan2 wo3!
Don’t put me in a difficult position!
Resources: Chinese Dictionary | Japanese Dictionary
