辛苦

Chinese

		8th heavenly stem; tired	bitter; intensely; miserable bitter; intensely; miserable; painful
trad. (辛苦)		辛	苦
simp. #(辛苦)		辛	苦
anagram		苦辛

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): xīnkǔ

  (Zhuyin): ㄒㄧㄣ ㄎㄨˇ

• Cantonese

  (Guangzhou–Hong Kong, Jyutping): san¹ fu²

  (Taishan, Wiktionary): lhin¹ fu²

• Hakka

  (Sixian, PFS): sîn-khú

  (Hailu, HRS): sin^ˋ ku^ˊ

  (Meixian, Guangdong): xin¹ ku³

• Puxian Min (Pouseng Ping'ing): sing¹ kou³
• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): sin-khó͘ / sen-khó͘

  (Teochew, Peng'im): sing¹ kou²

• Wu (Northern, Wugniu): ¹shin-khu₅ / ¹shin-khu₃

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: xīnkǔ
    • Zhuyin: ㄒㄧㄣ ㄎㄨˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: sinkǔ
    • Wade–Giles: hsin¹-kʻu³
    • Yale: syīn-kǔ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: shinkuu
    • Palladius: синьку (sinʹku)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ɕin⁵⁵ kʰu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: san¹ fu²
    • Yale: sān fú
    • Cantonese Pinyin: san¹ fu²
    • Guangdong Romanization: sen¹ fu²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /sɐn⁵⁵ fuː³⁵/
  • (Taishanese, Taicheng)
    • Wiktionary: lhin¹ fu²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ɬin³³ fu⁵⁵/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: sîn-khú
    • Hakka Romanization System: xin^ˊ ku^ˋ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: xin¹ ku³
    • Sinological IPA: /sin²⁴ kʰu³¹/
  • (Hailu, incl. Zhudong)
    • Hakka Romanization System: sin^ˋ ku^ˊ
    • Sinological IPA: /sin⁵³ kʰu²⁴/
  • (Meixian)
    • Guangdong: xin¹ ku³
    • Sinological IPA: /ɕin⁴⁴⁻³⁵ kʰu³¹/
• Puxian Min
  • (Putian)
    • Pouseng Ping'ing: sing¹ kou³ [Phonetic: sing⁵ ngou³]
    • Báⁿ-uā-ci̍: sing-kô
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ɬiŋ⁵³³⁻¹¹ ^(kʰ-)ŋɔu⁴⁵³/
  • (Xianyou)
    • Pouseng Ping'ing: sing¹ kou³ [Phonetic: sing⁵ ngou³]
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ɬiŋ⁵⁴⁴⁻²¹ ^(kʰ-)ŋɔu³³²/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, General Taiwanese, Jinjiang, Philippines)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: sin-khó͘
    • Tâi-lô: sin-khóo
    • Phofsit Daibuun: sinqor
    • IPA (Xiamen, Zhangzhou): /sin⁴⁴⁻²² kʰɔ⁵³/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /sin⁴⁴⁻³³ kʰɔ⁴¹/
    • IPA (Taipei): /sin⁴⁴⁻³³ kʰɔ⁵³/
    • IPA (Quanzhou, Jinjiang, Philippines): /sin³³ kʰɔ⁵⁵⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Hui'an)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: sen-khó͘
    • Tâi-lô: sen-khóo
    • Phofsit Daibuun: senqor
    • IPA (Hui'an): /sen³³ kʰɔ⁵⁴/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: sing¹ kou²
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: sing khóu
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /siŋ³³⁻²³ kʰou⁵²/
• Wu
  • (Northern: Shanghai)
    • Wugniu: ¹shin-khu₅
    • MiniDict: shin^平 khu^去
    • Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ¹xin-khu₂
    • Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /ɕin⁵⁵ kʰu²¹/
  • (Northern: Jiaxing)
    • Wugniu: ¹shin-khu₃
    • MiniDict: shin^平 khu^上
    • Sinological IPA (Jiaxing): /ɕin⁴⁴ kʰu²¹/

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• Middle Chinese: sin khuX|khuH

Rime
Character	辛	苦	苦
Reading #	1/1	1/2	2/2
Initial (聲)	心 (16)	溪 (29)	溪 (29)
Final (韻)	眞 (43)	模 (23)	模 (23)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)	Rising (X)	Departing (H)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open	Open
Division (等)	III	I	I
Fanqie	息鄰切	康杜切	苦故切
Baxter	sin	khuX	khuH
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/siɪn/	/kʰuoX/	/kʰuoH/
Pan Wuyun	/sin/	/kʰuoX/	/kʰuoH/
Shao Rongfen	/sjen/	/kʰoX/	/kʰoH/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/sin/	/kʰɔX/	/kʰɔH/
Li Rong	/siĕn/	/kʰoX/	/kʰoH/
Wang Li	/sĭĕn/	/kʰuX/	/kʰuH/
Bernhard Karlgren	/si̯ĕn/	/kʰuoX/	/kʰuoH/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	xīn	kǔ	kù
Expected Cantonese Reflex	san1	fu2	fu3

Adjective

辛苦

1. laborious; hard; miserable; exhausting

Synonyms

Dialectal synonyms of 辛苦 (“laborious”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		辛苦, 累人, 吃重, 吃力
Northeastern Mandarin	Beijing	辛苦
	Taiwan	辛苦
	Malaysia	辛苦
	Singapore	辛苦
Cantonese	Guangzhou	辛苦
	Hong Kong	辛苦
	Taishan	辛苦
	Dongguan	辛苦
	Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu)	辛苦
	Singapore (Guangfu)	辛苦
Hakka	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	辛苦
	Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian)	辛苦
	Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu)	辛苦
	Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu)	辛苦
	Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping)	辛苦
	Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an)	辛苦
Eastern Min	Fuzhou	辛苦
	Singapore (Fuqing)	辛苦
Southern Min	Xiamen	艱苦
	Quanzhou	艱苦
	Zhangzhou	艱苦
	Penang (Hokkien)	艱苦
	Singapore (Hokkien)	艱苦
	Manila (Hokkien)	艱苦
	Shantou	艱苦
	Shantou (Chenghai)	艱苦
	Jieyang	艱苦
	Singapore (Teochew)	艱苦
	Pontianak (Teochew)	艱苦
	Wenchang	艱苦
	Singapore (Hainanese)	艱苦
Southern Pinghua	Nanning (Tingzi)	辛苦
Wu	Shanghai	辛苦, 衰瘏, 吃力
	Shanghai (Chongming)	辛
	Suzhou	辛苦
	Danyang	吃力
	Hangzhou	吃力
	Ningbo	𢜭力, 吃力
	Jinhua	著力, 吃力

edit

• 不容易 (bùróngyì)
• 勤 (qín) (literary, or in compounds)
• 困難 / 困难
• 疑難 / 疑难 (yínán)
• 硬斗 (Hokkien)
• 硬氣 / 硬气 (Quanzhou Hokkien, Xiamen Hokkien)
• 硬水 (Hokkien)
• 硬繚 / 硬缭 (Hokkien)
• 硬頭 / 硬头 (Xiamen Hokkien, Zhangzhou Hokkien)
• 良苦 (liángkǔ) (literary)
• 艱巨 / 艰巨 (jiānjù)
• 艱苦 / 艰苦 (jiānkǔ)
• 艱辛 / 艰辛 (jiānxīn)
• 艱難 / 艰难 (jiānnán)
• 苦難 / 苦难 (kǔnàn)
• 辛勞 / 辛劳 (xīnláo)
• 難 / 难

Related terms

• 勤勞／勤劳 (qínláo)
• 辛勤 (xīnqín)

Verb

辛苦

1. to work hard; to toil; to go through hardship

   辛苦一輩子／辛苦一辈子  ―  xīnkǔ yībèizi  ―  to work hard all one's life

2. (polite) to trouble; to bother (often used to thank someone for assistance; can be used for general assistance over time or a specific act)

   你辛苦了！  ―  Nǐ xīnkǔ le!  ―  Thanks for your trouble!

   辛苦大家了！  ―  Xīnkǔ dàjiā le!  ―  Thanks, everyone, for your trouble!

   辛苦嗮！ [Cantonese]  ―  san¹ fu² saai³! [Jyutping]  ―  Thank you so much for your trouble!

Synonyms

• (to work hard): 苦幹／苦干 (kǔgàn)
• (to trouble):

edit

• 交仗 (Taiwanese Hokkien)
• 付託 / 付托 (fùtuō)
• 勞慰 / 劳慰 (nao² wei⁴) (Sichuanese, polite)
• 勞累 / 劳累 (láolèi) (polite)
• 囑託 / 嘱托 (zhǔtuō)
• 委託 / 委托 (wěituō)
• 寄 (jì)
• 寄託 / 寄托 (jìtuō)
• 打擾 / 打扰 (dǎrǎo) (polite)
• 拜託 / 拜托 (bàituō) (polite)
• 煩 / 烦 (fán) (polite)
• 相煩 / 相烦 (xiāngfán) (polite)
• 託付 / 托付 (tuōfù)
• 託管 / 托管 (tuōguǎn)
• 麻煩 / 麻烦 (máfan) (polite)
• 齪嘈 / 龊嘈 (Zhangzhou Hokkien, Taiwanese Hokkien)

Derived terms

• 不辭辛苦 / 不辞辛苦 (bùcíxīnkǔ)
• 備嘗辛苦 / 备尝辛苦
• 攞苦嚟辛 / 𫽋苦嚟辛 (Cantonese)
• 辛苦你了 (xīnkǔ nǐ le)
• 辛苦錢 / 辛苦钱 (xīnkǔqián)
• 辛辛苦苦 (xīnxīnkǔkǔ)

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (辛苦):

• → Japanese: 辛(しん)苦(く) (shinku)
• → Korean: 신고(辛苦) (sin'go)

References

• 李如龙 [Li, Ru-long]; 刘福铸 [Liu, Fu-zhu]; 吴华英 [Wu, Hua-ying]; 黄国城 [Huang, Guo-cheng] (2019), 莆仙方言调查报告 [Investigation Report on Puxian Dialect] (overall work in Mandarin and Puxian Min), Xiamen University Press, →ISBN, page 33.