苦 (kǔ): Bitter — Stroke Order & Writing Guide

HSK 2.0Level 4

HSK 3.0Vocab 4

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Animated Stroke Order 苦

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Stroke Order Diagrams 苦

Character Breakdown

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苦=艹grass+古ancient

Grass (艹) that is old (古) — a bitter taste, like aged herbs that have turned harsh.

Free Printable Handwriting Practice with Stroke Order: 苦

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苦 handwriting practice sheet - portrait orientation

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苦 handwriting practice sheet - landscape orientation

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HSK Vocabulary: 苦

HSK words that contain this character.

辛苦

xīn kǔ

hard; tough [work; life]

HSK 4

刻苦

kè kǔ

assiduous; hardworking; painstaking

HSK 5

痛苦

Example Sentences

Real-world example sentences demonstrating how 苦 is used in context

tā他

gōng工

zuò作

hěn很

xīn辛

kǔ苦

，

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pain; agony; sore

HSK 5

He works very hard and works overtime every day

shī失

qù去

qīn亲

rén人

ràng让

tā他

fēi非

cháng常

tòng痛

kǔ苦

。

Losing a loved one made him very painful

kǔ苦

guā瓜

suī虽

rán然

kǔ苦

，

dàn但

shì是

hěn很

yǒu有

yíng营

yǎng养

。

Although bitter melon is bitter, it is very nutritious

zhè这

bēi杯

kā咖

fēi啡

tài太

kǔ苦

le了

，

wǒ我

xū需

yào要

jiā加

xiē些

táng糖

。

This cup of coffee is too bitter; I need to add some sugar.

Related Characters

Explore characters by relationship

HSK Level 4

Characters from the same exam level.

shōu收 shū输 shuài帅 sǐ死 suān酸 tái抬

View all HSK 4 characters →

Same Sound

Characters pronounced "ku".

kù库 kū哭 kù裤 kū枯 kù酷 kū窟

View all "ku" characters →

Same Radical

Characters with radical "艹".

rui芮 zhù著 cí茨 fān藩 suō蓑 shān苫

View all "艹" radical characters →