喜怒哀乐
xǐ nù āi lè · HSK 7
happiness
🎭 喜 happy + 怒 angry + 哀 grief + 乐 joy = the four human emotions
A four-character set listing the emotional range: 喜 (xǐ, happiness), 怒 (nù, anger), 哀 (āi, sorrow), 乐 (lè, joy). Each character is the head of a common compound: 欢喜, 愤怒, 悲哀, 快乐.
喜 — drum 壴 (top) + mouth 口 (bottom)
Originally a pictograph showing a drum (壴) above a mouth (口), depicting people singing or shouting joyfully alongside drumming at a celebration. The combination conveyed festive happiness, and the character came to mean 'joy' or 'to like.' The drum element 壴 itself depicts a drum on a stand.
乐 — stylized depiction of a wooden instrument with strings
Originally a pictograph of a wooden frame holding strings or bells, representing a musical instrument. The character first meant 'music' (read yuè), and by extension came to mean 'joy, happiness' (read lè), since music brings pleasure. The simplified form 乐 streamlines the older 樂.