发愁
fā choú · HSK 7
to worry
😟 fā choú = emit + worry — your hair stands on end from fretting
发 (fā) means to emit or send out, 愁 (chóu) means worry. Together: sending out worry, letting anxiety radiate from you. The 秋 in 愁 is autumn + heart — the season that weighs on the heart.
发 — simplified form of 發; from 癶 (two feet) + 弓 (bow) + 殳 (weapon)
The traditional form 發 depicted shooting an arrow from a bow, with 癶 showing outstretched feet and 弓 the bow, giving the core sense of 'send out, discharge.' From this came extended meanings like 'issue, emit, develop.' The modern simplified 发 also absorbed 髮 (hair), so it now covers both 'to send out' and 'hair.'
愁 — autumn 秋 (top) + heart 心 (bottom)
A semantic compound combining 秋 (autumn) above 心 (heart). Autumn, with its withering leaves and fading light, traditionally evoked melancholy in Chinese poetry, so 'autumn over the heart' came to mean sorrow, worry, or anxiety. 秋 also hints at the sound.