四苦八苦
Japanese
| Kanji in this term | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 四 | 苦 | 八 | 苦 |
| し Grade: 1 |
く Grade: 3 |
はち > はっ Grade: 1 |
く Grade: 3 |
| on'yomi | |||
Etymology
Compound of 四苦 (shiku, “the four kinds of suffering”) + 八苦 (hakku, “the eight kinds of suffering”). Specifically, in Buddhism, the four kinds of suffering refers to the suffering of birth, old age, disease and death. The eight kinds of suffering refers to the previous four and parting from loved ones, meeting disliked ones, not getting what one seeks and pains of the five skandha.[1]
Pronunciation
Noun
四苦八苦 • (shikuhakku)
- being in dire straits, being hard put to it
- (Buddhism) the four and eight kinds of suffering
Verb
四苦八苦する • (shikuhakku suru) suru (stem 四苦八苦し (shikuhakku shi), past 四苦八苦した (shikuhakku shita))
- Same as above.
Conjugation
| Katsuyōkei ("stem forms") | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Mizenkei ("imperfective") | 四苦八苦し | しくはっくし | shikuhakku shi |
| Ren’yōkei ("continuative") | 四苦八苦し | しくはっくし | shikuhakku shi |
| Shūshikei ("terminal") | 四苦八苦する | しくはっくする | shikuhakku suru |
| Rentaikei ("attributive") | 四苦八苦する | しくはっくする | shikuhakku suru |
| Kateikei ("hypothetical") | 四苦八苦すれ | しくはっくすれ | shikuhakku sure |
| Meireikei ("imperative") | 四苦八苦せよ¹ 四苦八苦しろ² |
しくはっくせよ¹ しくはっくしろ² |
shikuhakku seyo¹ shikuhakku shiro² |
| Key constructions | |||
| Passive | 四苦八苦される | しくはっくされる | shikuhakku sareru |
| Causative | 四苦八苦させる 四苦八苦さす |
しくはっくさせる しくはっくさす |
shikuhakku saseru shikuhakku sasu |
| Potential | 四苦八苦できる | しくはっくできる | shikuhakku dekiru |
| Volitional | 四苦八苦しよう | しくはっくしよう | shikuhakku shiyō |
| Negative | 四苦八苦しない | しくはっくしない | shikuhakku shinai |
| Negative continuative | 四苦八苦せず | しくはっくせず | shikuhakku sezu |
| Formal | 四苦八苦します | しくはっくします | shikuhakku shimasu |
| Perfective | 四苦八苦した | しくはっくした | shikuhakku shita |
| Conjunctive | 四苦八苦して | しくはっくして | shikuhakku shite |
| Hypothetical conditional | 四苦八苦すれば | しくはっくすれば | shikuhakku sureba |
¹ Written imperative
² Spoken imperative
References
- “四苦八苦”, in 漢字ぺディア [Kanjipedia][1] (in Japanese), The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation, 2015–2026