心酸

• Pinyin: xīn suān
• Hanzi breakdown: 心 = heart (pictograph); 酸 = 酉 + 夋 (sour, fermented sensation)

Meaning

To feel a pang of sadness; to be moved to sorrow. The aching, bittersweet feeling caused by sorrow or sympathy.

Used to describe the feeling one gets when witnessing hardship or reflecting on difficult memories. More emotional and visceral than general sadness.

Examples

1. 看着老人蹒跚地走在风雪中，路人不禁心酸落泪。 Seeing the elderly man shuffle through the wind and snow, passersby couldn’t help but cry with a pang of sadness.
2. 想起童年的艰辛，他心里不禁一阵心酸。 Thinking about the hardships of his childhood, he felt a sudden ache in his heart.
3. 这部纪录片记录了留守儿童的生活，令无数观众心酸不已。 This documentary records the lives of left-behind children and left countless viewers heartbroken.

Usage Guide

Context: personal expression, literature, emotional contexts

Tone: sorrowful

Do Say

• 读到信中那几行简短的文字，她眼眶一红，心里涌起一阵难以言说的心酸。(Reading those few brief lines in the letter, her eyes reddened and an indescribable pang of sorrow welled up in her heart.)
• 面对孤独终老的邻居，社区志愿者们心酸之余，更加坚定了长期陪伴的决心。(Faced with the neighbor growing old in solitude, the community volunteers felt a deep pang of grief that only strengthened their resolve to provide long-term companionship.)

Don't Say

• 这个味道心酸 — 心酸 describes emotional pain, not literal sour taste; say 很酸 for sour flavour

Origin & History

心 (heart) + 酸 (sour/aching) — the heart feels a sour, aching pain

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal