DIFFICULT    困難

POSSIBLE BUT EVEN-IF TRIED ONLY ACHIEVED RARELY OR ONLY by USING BIG EFFORT.
HARDSTRENUOUSARDUOUSLABORIOUSTOUGHONEROUSBURDENSOMEDEMANDINGPUNISHINGGRUELINGBACK-BREAKINGEXHAUSTINGTIRINGFATIGUINGWEARISOMEINFORMAL HELLISHKILLINGARCHAIC TOILSOMEHARDCOMPLICATEDCOMPLEXINVOLVEDIMPENETRABLEUNFATHOMABLEOVER/ABOVE ONE'S HEADBEYOND ONEPUZZLINGBAFFLINGPERPLEXINGCONFUSINGMYSTIFYINGPROBLEMATICINTRICATEKNOTTYTHORNYTICKLISH
Old Chinese Criteria
1. The clearly dominant word for anything that is hard to achieve or hard to sustain is nán 難 (ant. yì 易 "easy"). 2. Jiān 艱 refers to hardship and diffuculties, typically with respect to certain tasks. 3. Jù 劇 "critical, virulent" sometimes has usages that come close to "troublesome, difficult".
Modern Chinese Criteria
困難 艱難 繁難 萬難 疑難 難 難於登天 為難 難人 作難 討厭 棘手 纏手 扎手 辣手 吃力 費力 吃勁 費勁 費事 費時 費難 好不容易 好容易 費手腳 費精神 費心思 老火 傷腦筋 談何容易 來之不易 千難萬難 難上加難 寸步難行 積重難返 戛戛乎難哉 海底撈針 大海撈針 挾山超海 挾泰山超北海 rough draft to BEGIN TO identify synonym group members for analysis, based on CL etc. 18.11.2003. CH ／
Hyponym
  • INACCESSIBLE　DIFFICULT to APPROACH. (anc: 9/0, child: 0)
Antonym
  • EASYPOSSIBLE AND IF TRIED OFTEN ACHIEVED LACKING:without EFFORT.
Hypernym
  • POSSIBLE　ABLE TO BE DONE OR ABLE TO HAPPEN, OR ABLE TO BE THE CASE.  (anc: 7/0, child: 3)
  • ABLE　HAVE FEATURES one NEEDS in SELF:oneself FOR ACHIEVING something. (anc: 6/0, child: 16)
  • HAVE　RELATION to something such that it BE-IN:is in one OR is CONTROLLED by one. (anc: 5/0, child: 5)
  • A Dictionary of Selected Synonyms in the Principal Indo-European Languages ( BUCK 1988) p. 9.97

  • De Rerum Humanarum Emendatione ( COMENIUS 1665) p. 508

    DIFFICILIS, e, qvod sine Virium intensione fieri non potest. Req. 1. Ut res sit possibile. Nam quod impossibile, nulla virium intensione peragitur. 2. Vires aliqvae. 3. aegre illuc sufficientes.

    5 Axioms

  • Lateinische Synonyme und Etymologien ( DOEDERLEIN 1840) p.

    DIFFICULT

    arduus refers to something being hard of access.

    difficilis refers to something being hard to do.

  • Anthologia sive Florilegium rerum et materiarum selectarum ( LANGIUS 1631) p.

    ADVERSITAS

    DIFFICULTAS

  • Lateinische Synonymik ( MENGE) p. 321

  • 中國文化背景八千詞 Zhongguo wenhua beijing ba qian ci ( WU SANXING 2008) p. 371ff

  • Using Chinese Synonyms ( GRACE ZHANG 2010) p. 171

  • Chinese Synonyms Usage Dictionary ( TENG SHOU-HSIN 1996) p. 68

  • Chinese Synonyms Usage Dictionary ( TENG SHOU-HSIN 1996) p. 280

  • Bibliographisches Handbuch zur Sprachinhaltsforschung. Teil II. Systematischer Teil. B. Ordnung nach Sinnbezirken (mit einem alphabetischen Begriffsschluessel): Der Mensch und seine Welt im Spiegel der Sprachforschung ( FRANKE 1989) p. 60A

    • Words (24 items)

    難  nán OC: mɢlaan MC: nɑn 143 Attributions

    The clearly dominant word for anything that is hard to achieve or hard to sustain is nán 難 (ant. yì 易 "easy").

      Word relations
    • Ant: 易/EASY The current general word for easiness of actions is yì 易 (ant. nán 難 "difficult").
    • Ant: 便/CONVENIENT
    • Assoc: 艱/DISTRESS Jiān 艱 refers to hardship and diffuculties, typically with respect to certain tasks.
    • Oppos: 可/ABLE Kě 可 is occasionally used for kěyǐ 可以 and typically comes before passivised verbs: "be V-able".

      Syntactic words
    • nab.post-Nactdifficulty of N
    • nabfactualnàn: difficult situation; difficult point, difficulty; what is difficult; difficult task; difficulties ahead
    • v[adN]what is difficult; what is problematic; what is complicatedCH
    • vi0-V{SUBJECT}it is difficult to VCH
    • vievent, inchoativerun into difficulties
    • vifigurativebe difficult (i.e. impossible)
    • vigradedbe (comparatively) difficult; [cf: 甚難 which proves the graded nature of the predicate]
    • visubject=humanbe a difficult case (said of persons); have problems
    • visuperlativebe (the prototypically/most) difficultCH
    • vt+prep+Nabbe more difficult than NabCH
    • vt+prep+NPab{ACT}have difficulties VERBing 難乎有恆
    • vt+V[0]find it difficult to V, have trouble (doing something), have a hard time (doing something), find it hard to; be unlikely to (commit an offence one is bound to be punished for)
    • vt+V[0]omfind it difficult to (do what is topicalised before 難)
    • vt+V[0]{PASS}be hard to V, to be V-ed
    • vtoNcausativeto make N difficult, to complicate NLZ
    • vtoNcausative, passivebe made more difficult; be made difficultCH
    • vtoNputativeregard something as difficult; find something dificult 難之
    • vt＋V(0)it is difficult (for the conceptually determinate N) to VCH
    勞  láo OC: raaw MC: lɑu 3 Attributions
      Syntactic words
    • vt+prep+Vhave a hard time V-ingLZ
    • vt+V[0]have a hard time doing something ?????????? HF37 should be moved to the other SW
    困  kùn OC: khuuns MC: khuo̝n 2 Attributions
      Syntactic words
    • ndifficulties; desperate situation; trouble
    • vtoNface as difficulty, be faced with as troublingCH
    • vtoNcausativecause serious difficulties for
    有  yǒu OC: ɢʷɯʔ MC: ɦɨu 2 Attributions
      Syntactic words
    • VPiexpected answer: no!what problems would there be?
    警  jǐng OC: kreŋʔ MC: kɣaŋ 1 Attribution
      Syntactic words
    • nabeventalarm; alarming situation, crisis
    重  zhòng OC: doŋʔ MC: ɖi̯oŋ 1 Attribution
      Syntactic words
    • vibe a heavy task, be hard to do
    難事  nán shì MC: nan dzriH OC: mɢlaan dzrɯs 1 Attribution
      Syntactic words
    • NPpost-N(even) the most difficult matter in NCH
    岨峿  qū wú MC: tshjo ngu OC: skha ŋaa 1 Attribution
      Syntactic words
    • VPibe excruciatingly hard to come to grips withCH
    難  nàn MC: nanX OC: mɢlaans 1 Attribution
      Syntactic words
    • nabdifficultyCH
    難可  nán kě OC: mɢlaan khlaalʔ MC: nɑn khɑ 1 Attribution
      Syntactic words
    • VPt+V[0]V=passivebe hard to V
    難能  nán néng MC: nan noj OC: mɢlaan nɯɯŋ 1 Attribution
      Syntactic words
    • VPifigurativebe hard to do> be remarkable as an achievementCH
    難與  nán yǔ MC: nan yoX OC: mɢlaan k-laʔ 1 Attribution
      Syntactic words
    • VPi-V=難以　hard toCH
    事  shì MC: dzriH OC: dzrɯs 1 Attribution
      Syntactic words
    • nabdifficulty, troubleCH
    煩難  fán nán OC: ban mɢlaan MC: bi̯ɐn nɑn 1 Attribution
      Syntactic words
    • VPadNtroublesome or difficult
    嶮  xiǎn OC: qhromʔ MC: hiɛm 1 Attribution
      Syntactic words
    • vadNdifficult to walk or drive on (of roads etc)
    難及  nán jí OC: mɢlaan ɡrɯb MC: nɑn gip 0 Attributions
      Syntactic words
    • VPadNdifficult to get to the point of doing or reaching
    難忍  nán rěn OC: mɢlaan njinʔ MC: nɑn ȵin 0 Attributions
      Syntactic words
    • VPpostadVto V insufferably??? ???
    難易  nán yì OC: mɢlaan leeɡs MC: nɑn jiɛ 0 Attributions
      Syntactic words
    • NPabfeaturerelative difficulty
    劇  jù OC: ɡlaɡ MC: gɣɛk 0 Attributions

    Jù 劇"critical, virulent" sometimes has usages that come close to "troublesome, difficult".

      Syntactic words
    • nabfactualtroublesome tasks
    • nsubjectwhat is difficult; the burdensome; troublesome tasks
    • vioccasionally: be troublesome to deal with, critical XINLUN 劇如此
    厄  è OC: qreeɡ MC: ʔɣɛk 0 Attributions
      Syntactic words
    • nstraits; difficulties (MENG)
    屯  zhūn OC: tun MC: ʈʷin
    屯  tún OC: duun MC: duo̝n 0 Attributions
      Syntactic words
    • vidifficult
      Click here to add pinyin MC:  OC: 0 Attributions
      Syntactic words
    • VPi-V=難以　hard toCH
      Click here to add pinyin MC:  OC: 0 Attributions
      Syntactic words
    • VPibe excruciatingly hardCH
    深  shēn MC: syim OC: qhljum
    深  shēn MC: syim OC: qhljum 0 Attributions
      Syntactic words
    • vibe difficult to understand