| 1 | 痛苦 | 痛苦 | tòng kǔ | tong4 ku3 | pain; suffering; painful; Classifiers: 个 | | |
| 2 | 苦 | 苦 | kǔ | ku3 | bitter; hardship; pain; to suffer; to bring suffering to; painstakingly | | |
| 3 | 艰苦 | 艱苦 | jiān kǔ | jian1 ku3 | difficult; hard; arduous | | |
| 4 | 辛苦 | 辛苦 | xīn kǔ | xin1 ku3 | exhausting; hard; tough; arduous; to work hard; to go to a lot of trouble; hardship(s) | | |
| 5 | 苦难 | 苦難 | kǔ nàn | ku3 nan4 | suffering | | |
| 6 | 刻苦 | 刻苦 | kè kǔ | ke4 ku3 | hardworking; assiduous | | |
| 7 | 艰苦奋斗 | 艱苦奮鬥 | jiān kǔ fèn dòu | jian1 ku3 fen4 dou4 | to struggle arduously | | |
| 8 | 苦恼 | 苦惱 | kǔ nǎo | ku3 nao3 | vexed; distressed | | |
| 9 | 苦笑 | 苦笑 | kǔ xiào | ku3 xiao4 | to force a smile; a bitter laugh | | |
| 10 | 贫苦 | 貧苦 | pín kǔ | pin2 ku3 | poverty-stricken; poor | | |
| 11 | 受苦 | 受苦 | shòu kǔ | shou4 ku3 | to suffer hardship | | |
| 12 | 苦闷 | 苦悶 | kǔ mèn | ku3 men4 | depressed; dejected; feeling low | | |
| 13 | 吃苦 | 吃苦 | chī kǔ | chi1 ku3 | to bear hardships | | |
| 14 | 困苦 | 困苦 | kùn kǔ | kun4 ku3 | deprivation; distressed; miserable | | |
| 15 | 苦痛 | 苦痛 | kǔ tòng | ku3 tong4 | pain; suffering | | |
| 16 | 苦心 | 苦心 | kǔ xīn | ku3 xin1 | painstaking effort; to take a lot of trouble; laborious at pains | | |
| 17 | 苦干 | 苦幹 | kǔ gàn | ku3 gan4 | to work hard | | |
| 18 | 穷苦 | 窮苦 | qióng kǔ | qiong2 ku3 | impoverished; destitute | | |
| 19 | 劳苦 | 勞苦 | láo kǔ | lao2 ku3 | to toil; hard work | | |
| 20 | 苦不堪言 | 苦不堪言 | kǔ bù kān yán | ku3 bu4 kan1 yan2 | to suffer unspeakable misery; indescribably painful; hellish | | |
| 21 | 苦于 | 苦於 | kǔ yú | ku3 yu2 | to suffer from (a disadvantage) | | |
| 22 | 不经一番风霜苦,难得腊梅吐清香 | 不經一番風霜苦,難得臘梅吐清香 | bù jīng yī fān fēng shuāng kǔ , nán dé là méi tǔ qīng xiāng | bu4 jing1 yi1 fan1 feng1 shuang1 ku3 , nan2 de2 la4 mei2 tu3 qing1 xiang1 | Without once passing through the winter's cold and wind, where would the sweet spring fragrance come from? | | |
| 23 | 嘴甜心苦 | 嘴甜心苦 | zuǐ tián xīn kǔ | zui3 tian2 xin1 ku3 | sweet mouth, bitter heart (idiom); insincere flattery | | |
| 24 | 不辞辛苦 | 不辭辛苦 | bù cí xīn kǔ | bu4 ci2 xin1 ku3 | to make nothing of hardships | | |
| 25 | 备尝艰苦 | 備嘗艱苦 | bèi cháng jiān kǔ | bei4 chang2 jian1 ku3 | 备尝艰苦 | | |