難
Mnemonic
A sunflower has grown impossibly tall, and a hungry bird circles it desperately. Reaching those seeds is difficult—the bird slams into the thick, armored husk again and again, exhausted. Every peck yields nothing. The sunflower sways mockingly in the wind while the bird suffers, making this the most difficult meal it has ever fought for.
Additional thoughts
Picture an enormous, fortress-like sunflower head with seeds locked behind armor plating, and a small, battered bird crashing into it repeatedly. The frustration and exhaustion equal difficulty.Quick recall
A sunflower locks its seeds away from a desperate bird, making feeding difficult.Details
The keyword for 難 is difficult. This kanji conveys the sense of something being hard to accomplish, troublesome, or fraught with obstacles. It encompasses both the idea of difficulty in a practical sense and the notion of hardship, disaster, or suffering. It can also carry the nuance of criticizing or finding fault with something, as in pointing out what is wrong or problematic.
- On'yomi
- なん
- Kun'yomi
- かた.い、-がた.い、むずか.しい、むづか.しい、むつか.しい、-にく.い