挫折

Mandarin · pinyin cuò zhé

Meanings

  1. setback
  2. reverse
  3. check
  4. defeat
  5. frustration
  6. disappointment
  7. to frustrate
  8. to discourage
  9. to set sb back
  10. to blunt
  11. to subdue
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Characters in this entry

挫
cuò · push down; chop down; grind
折
zhé · break off, snap; bend
Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

4–2 · cuo4 zhe2

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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.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 3 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

co3 zit3

Cantonese word readings for 挫折. 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.

verb

  1. to encounter difficulties; to frustrate; to set back
  2. to discourage; to dampen

noun

  1. setback; obstacle; frustration

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

挫折 · cuo4 zhe2
CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG · edition 2026-10-13 · source line 47,142
Original dictionary · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source & transformation details
Exact source record挫折 挫折 [cuo4 zhe2] /setback/reverse/check/defeat/frustration/disappointment/to frustrate/to discourage/to set sb back/to blunt/to subdue/