难堪 (nánkān) · embarrassed

难堪 (nánkān) means “embarrassed; awkward; hard to bear”. It is written with 2 characters: 难 (difficult) + 堪 (to endure). It is an old HSK 6 word (HSK 2.0).

How 难堪 is built

The characters

难 nán · difficult

What 难 is made of

又yòu — and
隹zhuī — short-tailed bird
- 亻rén — person

Origin hint: A hand 又 trying to grasp at a bird 隹 (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)

堪 kān · to endure

What 堪 is made of

土tǔ — earth
- 十 — ten
  - 一 — horizontal stroke
  - 丨 — vertical stroke
- 一 — horizontal stroke
甚shén — considerably
- 甘gān — sweet
  - 卄niàn — twenty
  - 二 — two strokes
- 匹pǐ — bolt of cloth
  - 匸xì — box
  - 儿ér — child

Example sentences

他当着大家的面批评我，我很难堪。Tā dāngzhe dàjiā de miàn pīpíng wǒ, wǒ hěn nánkān.He criticized me in front of everyone, and I felt embarrassed.

不要让别人难堪。Búyào ràng biérén nánkān.Don't put others in an awkward position.

Questions about 难堪

What does 难堪 mean?

难堪 (nánkān) means “embarrassed; awkward; hard to bear”.

How do you pronounce 难堪?

难堪 is pronounced nánkān.

Which HSK level is 难堪?

难堪 is in Old HSK 6.

Related words

Learn 难堪 with its group

It is part of Old HSK 6 · Group 130: a short group with quick checks and spaced repeats.

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