遇难

• Pinyin: yù nàn
• Hanzi breakdown: 遇 = 辶 + 禺 (movement/road + meeting — to encounter); 难 = 又 + 隹 (hand + bird — originally to capture, evolved to mean hardship/calamity)

Meaning

To perish in a disaster, accident, or violent incident; to lose one's life in a calamity. A formal term used in official and journalistic registers.

Used in contexts of natural disasters, transportation accidents, wars, and terrorist attacks to refer to victims who died. 遇难者 (victims) and 遇难人数 (death toll) are common compounds. More formal and grave than 死亡 or 去世; carries a sense of the person having been caught in circumstances beyond their control.

Examples

1. 据官方统计，此次地震造成逾三千人遇难，大量基础设施被严重损毁，当地政府随即启动最高级别应急响应机制并向国际社会发出紧急援助请求。 According to official statistics, the earthquake killed more than 3,000 people and severely damaged large amounts of infrastructure; the local government immediately activated the highest-level emergency response and issued an urgent appeal for international assistance.
2. 那架客机在恶劣气象条件下失控坠毁，机上全体乘客与机组人员均不幸遇难，事故调查委员会随后展开了为期一年的全面技术鉴定工作。 The passenger jet lost control and crashed in severe weather, and all passengers and crew were tragically killed; the accident investigation committee then launched a yearlong comprehensive technical inquiry.
3. 二战期间，数以百万计的平民在这场浩劫中遇难，他们的名字被镌刻于世界各地的纪念碑之上，以警示后人铭记这段历史的惨烈与沉重。 During World War II, millions of civilians died in this catastrophe; their names are engraved on memorials around the world to warn future generations and to remember the brutal weight of that history.

Usage Guide

Context: news, official reports, history, disasters

Tone: grave

Do Say

• 这场矿难共造成四十七名矿工遇难，事发后矿主因涉嫌违规生产被当地检察机关依法立案侦查，多名安全监管人员亦因失职渎职被暂停职务。(The mine disaster resulted in the deaths of forty-seven miners; after the incident, the mine owner was placed under investigation by the local procuratorate on suspicion of illegal production, and several safety supervision officials were also suspended for dereliction of duty.)
• 这部纪录片以幸存者的第一人称叙述还原了那场海啸袭来的真实过程，以及灾区民众在数千人遇难的废墟之上重建家园的漫长历程。(This documentary uses first-person accounts of survivors to reconstruct the actual course of events when the tsunami struck, and the long process of local communities rebuilding their homes amid the ruins where thousands had perished.)

Don't Say

• 他在登山途中遇难了 — without further context, 遇难 specifically means death; if the person faced danger or difficulty but survived, use 遇险 (to face danger) or 险些出事 (almost got into an accident) instead

Origin & History

遇 (to encounter — 辶road/movement + 禺symbol for meeting) + 难 (disaster/calamity). Together: to encounter calamity, to die in a disaster.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal