哀莫大於心死
简 哀莫大于心死 · 繁 哀莫大於心死Meanings
- nothing sadder than a withered heart (idiom attributed to Confucius by Zhuangzi 莊子 Zhuāng zǐ)
- no greater sorrow than a heart that never rejoices
- the worst sorrow is not as bad as an uncaring heart
- nothing is more wretched than apathy
Characters in this entry
- 哀
- āi · sad, mournful, pitiful; pity
- 莫
- mò · do not, is not, can not; negative
- 大
- dà · big, great, vast, large, high
- 於
- yú · yū · in, at, on; interjection alas!
- 心
- xīn · heart; mind, intelligence; soul; 5th lunar mansion, determinative star α Scorpii (Antares)
- 死
- sǐ · die; dead; death
- 于
- yú · in, on, at; go to; surname
Explore the spelling
Mandarin tones
1–4–4–2–1–3 · ai1 mo4 da4 yu2 xin1 si3
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
Connected dictionary
Read this spelling in Classical texts
Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.
哀莫大於心死 · find source passages ↗ · 哀莫大于心死 · find source passages ↗
Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading
Rime Cantonese 粵拼
oi1 mok6 daai6 jyu1 sam1 sei2
Cantonese word readings for 哀莫大於心死. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.
CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack
Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section
Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.
proverb
- Despair is the greatest sorrow; Nothing gives greater cause for sorrow than despair; There is no grief so great as despair; There is no poverty like the poverty of spirit.
Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack