| jiān | difficult/hard/hardship |
| 艰 | difficult hard hardship |
| 艰危 | difficult and dangerous |
| 艰巨 | arduous terrible (task) very difficult |
| 艰巨性 | arduousness formidability difficulty |
| 艰涩 | involved and abstruse; intricate and obscure |
| 艰深 | abstruse complicated |
| 艰深晦涩 | abstruse and unfathomable (idiom) |
| 艰苦 | difficult hard arduous |
| 艰苦卓绝 | showing utmost fortitude |
| 艰苦备尝 | have experienced all hardships; have suffered untold hardships |
| 艰苦奋斗 | painstaking efforts; struggle arduously |
| 艰苦朴素 | hard work and simple living |
| 艰辛 | hardships arduous difficult |
| 艰险 | difficult and dangerous hardships and perils |
| 艰难 | difficult hard challenging |
| 艰难困苦 | difficulties and hardships |
| 艰难曲折 | difficult and arduous; difficulty and arduousness |
| 艰难险阻 | untold dangers and difficulties (idiom) |