患

• Pinyin: huàn
• Hanzi breakdown: 患 = 串 + 心 (strung-together troubles + heart, multiple burdens burdening the heart)

Meaning

To suffer from; to be afflicted with (illness or trouble). Also used as a noun meaning calamity or affliction.

A formal, literary morpheme appearing in medical and classical contexts. As a verb, it means to contract or suffer from a disease. As a noun, it means disaster or trouble (e.g. 后患, 隐患). Appears in compounds such as 患者, 患病, 患有, 忧患.

Examples

1. 他年轻时曾患结核病，经过长期治疗才得以康复。 When he was young, he suffered from tuberculosis and only recovered after long-term treatment.
2. 未雨绸缪，方能防患于未然，避免日后陷入更大的危机。 Planning ahead is the only way to prevent trouble before it happens and avoid falling into an even bigger crisis later.
3. 该项目存在潜在的安全隐患，工程师建议立即进行全面排查。 The project has potential safety risks, and the engineers recommend an immediate, comprehensive inspection.

Usage Guide

Context: medical, formal writing, classical literature, risk management

Tone: serious

Do Say

• 据统计，全球每年有数百万人患心脑血管疾病，防控形势十分严峻。(Statistics show that millions of people worldwide suffer from cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases each year — the prevention and control situation is extremely serious.)
• 工厂设备老化严重，存在诸多安全隐患，管理方需尽快制定整改方案。(The factory equipment is severely aged and harbours numerous safety hazards; management must draw up rectification plans as soon as possible.)

Don't Say

• 患 in everyday casual speech to mean 'get sick' — use 生病 or 得病 in colloquial contexts; 患 is formal and literary in register

Origin & History

患 = 串 + 心 (strung together + heart — multiple troubles weighing on the heart)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal