辛 (xīn): (of taste) hot or pungent, hard, laborious
辛 (xīn) is a Chinese character meaning “(of taste) hot or pungent.” Classified as HSK Level 4 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 立 (structural) and 十 (structural). It ranks #1454 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically pictographic, 辛 a hot iron used to brand prisoners and slaves. Its radical form 辛 (bitter) appears in many related characters such as 辣 (là, hot (spicy)), 辩 (biàn, to dispute), 辞 (cí, to resign).
Definitions
- (of taste) hot or pungent
- hard
- laborious
Etymology & Origin
pictographicA hot iron used to brand prisoners and slaves
Decomposition: ⿱立十 (layout: top-bottom)
Stroke Order
Practice writing 辛 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 辛
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 辛普森proper-noun | xīn pǔ sēn | Simpson (name) |
| 辛勤adjective | xīn qín | hardworking |
| 辛辛那提proper-noun | xīn xīn nà tí | Cincinnati, Ohio |
| 辛辛苦苦adjective | xīn xīn kǔ kǔ | painstakingly |
| 奥斯威辛proper-noun | ào sī wēi xīn | Auschwitz (concentration camp) |
| 辛劳adjective | xīn láo | laborious |
| 千辛万苦phrase | qiān xīn wàn kǔ | to suffer untold hardships (idiom) |
| 施瓦辛格proper-noun | shī wǎ xīn gé | Arnold Schwarzenegger (1947–), Austrian-American bodybuilder, actor and politician, governor of California (2003–2011) |
| 赫尔辛基proper-noun | hè ěr xīn jī | Helsinki (Swedish Helsingfors), capital of Finland |
| 辛辣adjective | xīn là | spicy hot (taste) |
| 含辛茹苦phrase | hán xīn rú kǔ | to suffer every possible torment (idiom) |
| 辛酸adjective | xīn suān | pungent (taste) |
| 奥斯维辛 | ào sī wéi xīn | Auschwitz (concentration camp) |
| 辛迪加noun | xīn dí jiā | (loanword) syndicate |
| 基辛格proper-noun | jī xīn gé | Henry Kissinger (1923–2023), US academic and politician, Secretary of State 1973–1977 |
辛 appears in 63 compound words: 46 as the first character, 32 as the last, and 22 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 辛 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (12)
to spare no effort; to take pains; to take the trouble to; to go to the trouble of doing something
(Hong Kong, Taiwan) Wisconsin (a state in the Upper Midwest region of the United States)
Example Sentences
写好辛字需要掌握正确的笔画顺序。
xiě hǎo xīn zì xū yāo zhǎng wò zhēng què de bǐ huà shùn xù .
To write the character "辛" correctly, you need to master the proper stroke order.
辛潘为撑乌克兰放弃奥斯卡盛典 获泽连斯基亲...
xīn pān wéi chēng wū kè lán fàng qì ào sī kǎ shèng diǎn huò zé lián sī jī qīn . . .
Xin Pan skips the Oscars to show support for Ukraine and receives a personal...
男人下面瘙痒是什么原因引起的?饮食辛辣油腻助长湿热吗
nán rén xià miàn 瘙 yǎng shì shén má yuán yīn yǐn qǐ de ? yǐn shí xīn là yóu nì zhù cháng shī rè ma
What causes itching under a man? Does the diet spicy and greasy promote dampness and heat?
妇科白斑怎么治疗才能彻底根除?饮食清淡忌辛辣海鲜有效吗
fù kē bái bān zěn má zhì liáo cái néng chè de gēn chú ? yǐn shí qīng dàn jì xīn là hǎi xiān yǒu xiào ma
How can vaginal leukoplakia be completely cured? Is a light diet that avoids spicy foods and seafood effective?
墨西哥贩毒集团头目被杀引发骚乱 总统辛鲍姆指现时局势趋平静
mò xī gē fàn dú jí tuán tóu mù bèi shā yǐn fā sāo luàn zǒng tǒng xīn 鲍 mǔ zhǐ xiàn shí jú shì qū píng jìng
The killing of the leader of the Mexican drug cartel sparked riots President Simbaum said the situation is now calm
NBA/波尔辛吉斯只为勇士打一场就受伤!确定不随队出征...
N B A bō ěr xīn jí sī zhī wéi yǒng shì dǎ yī chǎng jiù shòu shāng ! què dìng bù suí duì chū zhēng . . .
NBA/Porzingis was injured after only one game for the Warriors! Determined not to go with the team...
兰辛是密西根州的首府。
Lánxīn shì Mìxīgēn Zhōu de shǒufǔ.
Lansing is the state capital of Michigan.
真不好意思，辛苦你了！
Zhēn bù hǎoyìsi, xīnkǔ nǐ le!
I'm really sorry to trouble you!
韩国菜以辛辣闻名。
Hánguó cài yǐ xīnlà wénmíng.
Korean food is noted for its spicy flavor.
你工作得太辛苦了。放轻松一下。
Nǐ gōngzuò de tài xīnkǔ le. fàng qīngsōng yīxià.
You are working too hard. Take it easy for a while.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 辛 (xīn) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 辛 and 软?
How many strokes does 辛 have?
What is the radical of 辛?
What are the components of 辛?
What are common words containing 辛?
What characters sound the same as 辛 (xīn)?
Is 辛 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 辛 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.