惨 (cǎn): miserable; wretched; cruel; inhuman; disastrous; tragic; dim; gloomy

Stroke Order & Writing

HSK 7adjective

Character info

Pinyin
Meaning: miserable; wretched; cruel; inhuman; disastrous; tragic; dim; gloomy
Characters: 1
Part of speech: adjective
HSK level: HSK 7
Strokes: 11
Radical: 忄
Structure: 左右结构

Full definitions

miserable
wretched
cruel
inhuman
disastrous
tragic
dim
gloomy

Chinese explanation

形容非常痛苦、不幸，令人难过
也表示程度严重、厉害，常用于不好的事情。

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Stroke-by-stroke breakdown

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11 strokes

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Example sentences

Yesterday's rainstorm soaked their tent and sleeping bags completely, and they had to huddle shivering in the car at midnight—truly miserable.

Last year his investment failed, he lost all his savings, and he owed a friend a large sum of money; he lived miserably during that period.

This stray dog had its leg broken by a car and lay whining by the roadside; it was too miserable to watch, so we hurriedly took it to the pet hospital.

In the last minute of the game, their team was leading by two points but then conceded three goals in a row, losing especially miserably.

After the war ended, that city was reduced to ruins, many families lost their loved ones, and people's lives were extremely miserable.

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