挫

cuò

坐 + 扌

Definitions

cuò (verb) to frustrate; to discourage; to dampen

cuò (verb) to oppress; to repress

cuò (noun) setback; failure; frustration

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 扌 represents the meaning and 坐 represents the sound.

Semantic: 扌 Phonetic: 坐

About

挫 is a phono-semantic compound combining the hand radical 扌 on the left and the phonetic component 坐 on the right. 扌 points to manual action, while 坐 indicates the pronunciation. Its core meanings are pushing down, subduing, and frustrating or suffering a setback. The original physical sense involved pressing, breaking, or suppressing something with the hand. This concrete action was later extended to abstract domains, so 挫 now commonly describes emotional, strategic, or professional defeats and the feeling of being thwarted.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Seal Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

遇到挫折很正常。

Yù dào cuòzhé hěn zhèngcháng.

It's normal to encounter setbacks.

这次失败挫伤了他的信心。

Zhè cì shībài cuòshāngle tā de xìnxīn.

This failure damaged his confidence.

球队的士气受到了严重挫折。

Qiúduì de shìqì shòudàole yánzhòng cuòzhé.

The team's morale suffered a serious setback.

我们必须挫败这个阴谋。

Wǒmen bìxū cuòbài zhège yīnmóu.

We must foil this conspiracy.

暂时的挫折不会让我们放弃。

Zànshí de cuòzhé bù huì ràng wǒmen fàngqì.

Temporary setbacks will not make us give up.

他的锐气在现实中屡受挫败。

Tā de ruìqì zài xiànshí zhōng lǚ shòu cuòbài.

His drive has been repeatedly frustrated in reality.

这个计划因资金问题受挫了。

Zhège jìhuà yīn zījīn wèntí shòu cuò le.

This plan was thwarted due to funding issues.

经济挫折是暂时的，信心比黄金更重要。

Jīngjì cuòzhé shì zànshí de, xìnxīn bǐ huángjīn gèng zhòngyào.

Economic setbacks are temporary; confidence is more important than gold.

Related Characters

Component: 坐

Component: 扌

挫