拮 (jié) - To be in straitened circumstances & to be poor

拮Tone 2

jié ｜ 9 strokes ｜ radical: 扌

健傑

拮 · jié

To be in straitened circumstances;

to be poor;

to pick up with thumb and forefinger;

to be diligent and hardworking.

To be in straitened circumstancesto be poorto pick up with thumb and forefinger

Usage highlights

Financial difficultyTo pick upHardworking and diligentEconomic hardshipLiving in povertyTo gather with effort

Synonyms

  • 穷— poor
  • 贫— impoverished
  • 困— in difficulty

Antonyms

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • He lives in poverty (拮据).
  • She picked up the coin with her fingers (拮取).
  • The family's financial situation is tight (家境拮据).
  • They work diligently to make ends meet (拮据地工作).

Collocations

  • Financial difficulty(拮据)
  • To pick up(拮取)
  • Hardworking and diligent(拮据)
  • Economic hardship(经济拮据)
  • Living in poverty(生活拮据)
  • To gather with effort(拮据)

Idioms

  • Living in poverty and hardship(拮据度日)
  • Working diligently despite difficulties(拮据不懈)
  • Financial constraints(拮据之境)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • The character combines the hand radical (扌) with 吉 (auspicious), suggesting the action of diligently working toward good fortune despite current difficulties.
  • Often used in classical texts to describe both physical picking actions and metaphorical economic hardship.
  • In modern usage, primarily appears in the compound 拮据 to describe financial difficulty.

FAQ