斗 dǒu / dòu — Chinese peck; to fight; to battle; to struggle; to incite; fight
两只公鸡在院子里争斗。Liǎng zhī gōng jī zài yuàn zi lǐ zhēng dòu.Two roosters are fighting in the yard.
Common words: 战斗 (zhàn dòu)、奋斗 (fèn dòu)、斗争 (dòu zhēng)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "to struggle"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "to struggle", including 斗 (dǒu / dòu), 竞 (jìng). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "to struggle" covers 2 different Chinese characters — 斗 (dǒu / dòu), 竞 (jìng) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 2 characters do not share a sound — their readings span dǒu, dòu, jìng — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 斗 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 斗 dǒu / dòuChinese peck; to fight; to battle; to struggle; to incite; fightUseful words: 战斗, 奋斗
- 竞 jìngto compete; to contend; to struggleUseful words: 竞争, 竞赛
Common words for these 2 "to struggle" characters
Anchor each of these 2 characters in a word you can picture — start with 斗 (dǒu / dòu) — so "to struggle" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 2 ways to say "to struggle".
竞 jìng — to compete; to contend; to struggle
运动场上，大家在激烈地竞争。Yùn dòng chǎng shàng, dà jiā zài jī liè de jìng zhēng.On the sports field, everyone competes fiercely.
Common words: 竞争 (jìng zhēng)、竞赛 (jìng sài)、竞选 (jìng xuǎn)
All 2 characters
Open 斗、竞 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.