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苦海

Mandarin · pinyin kǔ hǎi

lit. sea of bitterness
abyss of worldly suffering (Buddhist term)
depths of misery

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Characters in this entry

苦: kǔ · bitter; hardship, suffering
海: hǎi · sea, ocean; maritime

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Mandarin tones

3–3 · ku3 hai3

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

fu2 hoi2

Cantonese word readings for 苦海. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

noun

(Buddhism or figurative) the sea of bitterness; the ocean of suffering; the abyss of misery; this (weary) world

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

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