Hi, I always confuse for “辛” (xīn) & “幸” (xìng). It look so similar to me. How to differentiate it? and How to memorize and use it properly (avoid use it wrongly)? Appreciate that, thank you!
Hi Eddie,
辛 [xīn] means spicy, or of a pungent smell. It can also mean “difficult”. Common phrase is 辛苦 [xīnkǔ] (hard work).
whereas 幸 [xìng] means luck, or being blessed. Common phrases are 幸运 [xìngyùn] (luck) and 幸福 [xìngfú] happiness.
While I was little, my teacher taught me like this: Look carefully and you’ll find that the two lines are in different length in these two characters. In the character 辛, you will find the upper line is longer than the lower one. It just looks like a scarecrow working so hard standing there. So, 辛 is hard work. On the other hand, in the character 幸, the upper line is shorter than the lower one which means that this scarecrow does not need to work so hard to stand there happily. So, 幸 means luck and happiness.
Cheers.