How to say "heartbreak" in Japanese

Choosing the right word
  • 傷心しょうしんCommon
    no-adjective, suru verb, intransitive verbHeartbreak as a wounded heart: the sorrow of someone crushed by a painful blow such as a breakup, rejection or defeat. It names that bruised emotional state itself.
    彼かれは失恋しつれんのために傷心しょうしんした。↗
    He was heartbroken from unrequited love.
  • 断腸だんちょうCommon
    nounA literary word whose image is the guts being severed: grief so intense it is like physical agony. For everyday heartbreak this is seldom the word you want; it suits extreme, anguished sorrow.
  • 悲痛ひつうCommon
    na-adjective, no-adjectiveBitter, profound sorrow: it foregrounds the sheer depth of grief and extreme sadness rather than the state of a wounded heart after a personal blow.

All three denote deep emotional pain, but 傷心 pictures a heart wounded by a personal blow, 断腸 is a literary term for agonizing, gut-wrenching grief, and 悲痛 stresses bitter, extreme sadness.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

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