苦しい

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 苦しい is read as くるしい and means “painful” and “hard to breathe”.
• Basic usage: It describes physical breathlessness after running uphill and emotional pain from withholding the truth.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• 息が苦しい / 言えず苦しい
  • 息が苦しい is respiratory distress, while 言えず苦しい is emotional suffering.