坎

埳

kǎn

土 + 欠

Definitions

kǎn (noun) pit; hole

kǎn (noun) threshold

kǎn (noun) trigram symbol for water ☵

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 土 represents the meaning and 欠 represents the sound. Simplified form of 埳.

Semantic: 土 Phonetic: 欠

About

坎 is a phonosemantic compound and the simplified form of 埳. The semantic element 土 'earth' on the left indicates a connection to the ground, while the phonetic 欠 on the right supplies the sound. The character's literal meanings are a pit, hole, snare, or ditch in the earth. From this physical depression, the meaning metaphorically expanded to denote a significant obstacle, a difficult hurdle, or a critical juncture in a person's life. In traditional cosmology, 坎 serves as the name of one of the Eight Trigrams, representing water and the concept of danger.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

前面路上有个土坎。

Qiánmiàn lù shàng yǒu gè tǔ kǎn.

There is an earthen ridge on the road ahead.

人生总会有坎坷。

Rénshēng zǒng huì yǒu kǎnkě.

Life always has ups and downs.

他顺利度过了这个坎。

Tā shùnlì dùguòle zhège kǎn.

He smoothly passed this hurdle.

这段坎坷的道路很难走。

Zhè duàn kǎnkě de dàolù hěn nán zǒu.

This bumpy road is hard to walk on.

克服困难就像跨过一道坎。

Kèfú kùnnán jiù xiàng kuàguò yī dào kǎn.

Overcoming difficulties is like crossing a hurdle.

她的话说到了我的心坎里。

Tā de huà shuō dàole wǒ de xīn kǎn lǐ.

Her words touched my heart.

尽管前途坎坷，他仍坚持梦想。

Jǐnguǎn qiántú kǎnkě, tā réng jiānchí mèngxiǎng.

Although the future is rough, he still persists in his dream.

每一次挫折都是人生中的一道坎。

Měi yī cì cuòzhé dōu shì rénshēng zhōng de yī dào kǎn.

Every setback is a hurdle in life.

Related Characters

Composed characters:

Component: 土

Component: 欠

坎