About
瘅 (dàn) functions primarily as a medical and descriptive term, historically referring to severe exhaustion, distress, and illnesses like jaundice. A phono-semantic compound, it combines the sickness radical 疒 (chuáng), which depicts a person on a bed and signals medical conditions, with the phonetic 单 (dān) providing the sound. In traditional script, it appears as 癉 with the more complex 單. The character's meaning later extended from physical disease and chronic fatigue to abstract concepts of deep suffering, hatred, and intense affliction. Nevertheless, the radical 疒 firmly anchors it in the realm of bodily suffering.
Etymology Hide
Report an issue
Flag incorrect definitions, examples, etymology, etc.