Chinese word

口苦

Pronunciation

Pinyinkǒu kǔ

Meaning

  • adjectivebitter in the mouth

Example

吃了药后我觉得口苦。chī le yào hòu wǒ jué de kóu kǔ

After taking the medicine, I feel a bitter taste in my mouth.

Illustration for 口苦 (bitter in the mouth)

More examples

早上起床时有时会有口苦的感觉。zǎo shàng qǐ chuáng shí yǒu shí huì yǒu kóu kǔ de gǎn jué

Sometimes my mouth tastes bitter when I wake up in the morning.

Core concept

The mouth temporarily carries a bitter flavor from something recently eaten or drunk.

Common phrases

  • 有点口苦yóu diǎn kóu kǔ

    slightly bitter in the mouth

  • 口苦的感觉kóu kǔ de gǎn jué

    a feeling of bitterness in the mouth

Similar words

苦kǔ: Having a bitter taste, especially of food or drink.
苦涩kǔ sè: Having a bitter, astringent taste that lingers and feels unpleasant.
涩sè: Having a dry, rough, puckering taste in the mouth.

Definition in Chinese

嘴里感到苦味，通常是短暂的感觉，常见于吃了药、喝了苦茶或吃某些食物后。zuí lǐ gǎn dào kǔ wèi tōng cháng shì duǎn zàn de gǎn jué cháng jiàn yú chī le yào hē le kǔ chá huò chī mǒu xiē shí wù hòu

Word origin

The compound 口苦 (kǒukǔ, "bitter in the mouth") uses 口 (kǒu, "mouth") for the tasting place and 苦 (kǔ, "bitter") for the flavor.

Usage tips

  • In everyday conversation, a time or cause phrase makes this symptom more informative, especially when the sensation follows food, drink, or medicine.

Other meanings

  • bitterness in the mouthnoun

Opposites

  • 口甜kǒu tiánsweet in the mouthadjective

Word lists with this word