面倒臭い
めんどうくさい · mendoukusai · JLPT N2 · i-adj
tiresome
面倒 (trouble) + 臭い (smelly) = a task so troublesome it stinks
Casual form: めんどくさい. 面倒 means trouble or bother, and 臭い means smelly, so the word describes a chore that reeks of hassle. Use it for tasks you can't be bothered to do.
面 — enclosure 囗 + 自 (nose/face inside)
Originally a pictograph showing a face framed by an outline, with 自 (nose) inside representing the central feature of the face. The early meaning was 'face,' which extended to 'surface,' 'side,' and 'aspect.' In simplified Chinese, 面 also absorbed 麵, adding the meaning 'flour/noodles.'
倒 — person radical 亻 + 到 (to arrive)
倒 is a semantic-phonetic compound: the person radical 亻 gives meaning (an action done by/to a person), while 到 supplies the sound 'dào'. Originally meaning 'to fall over' (a person toppling), it extended to 'invert, upside down, pour out', as when something falls and spills.
臭 — 自 (nose) + 犬 (dog)
Originally a pictograph combining 自 (nose) and 犬 (dog), depicting a dog using its nose to sniff out scents. The early meaning was 'to smell,' later extended to 'odor' and then narrowed to 'foul smell.' The 'smell/sniff' sense was preserved in the later character 嗅.