悴 meaning and stroke order
To suffer; haggard, emaciated
How to write 悴, stroke by stroke
11 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 悴
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- haggard
- sad
- downcast
- distressed
- variant of 悴[cui4]
How 悴 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Heart.
忄 gives the meaning and 卒 hints at the sound.
Radical: 忄 (heart), shared by 167 characters on this site.
How to remember 悴
悴 combines the heart radical 忄 with 卒 (zú), which gives the sound. Picture a heart worn out to the end, and the face that shows it looks haggard and drained.
悴 almost never appears alone in modern Chinese. You will meet it in the word 憔悴 (qiáocuì), which describes someone who looks pale, thin and worn out from worry, illness or grief. Example: 她最近很憔悴。(Tā zuìjìn hěn qiáocuì.) She has looked very haggard lately.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 悴 with 碎 (suì, broken) or 醉 (zuì, drunk), since all three share 卒. Remember that only 悴 has the heart radical, and its pinyin is cuì, not suì or zuì.
Common words with 悴
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 憔悴 | qiáocuì | wan and sallow; thin and pallid |
悴 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 悴
How many strokes are in 悴?
悴 is written with 11 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 悴 mean?
悴 (cuì) means to suffer; haggard, emaciated. A common word with it is 憔悴 (qiáocuì), meaning "wan and sallow; thin and pallid".
How do you pronounce 悴?
悴 is pronounced cuì, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 悴?
The radical of 悴 is 忄, which carries the idea of "heart". Dictionaries list 悴 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 悴?
The traditional form of 悴 is 顇. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 悴 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
What is the difference between 憔悴 and 疲劳?
疲劳 (píláo) means tired or fatigued and can be temporary. 憔悴 describes a visible worn, sallow look, often from long stress, sorrow or illness, so it is more about appearance and emotion.
Can 憔悴 describe things other than people?
Yes, in literary writing it can describe flowers or plants that look withered and faded. In everyday speech it is mostly used for a person's face or overall look.