1.
sorrow, grief, melancholy
A deep, lingering sadness or melancholy. A literary word for emotional pain or grief that weighs heavily on the heart.
2.
anxiety, worry, concern
Worry or concern about future troubles or the state of the world. Often used in the expression 'to have concerns about' or 'the worry of.'
Usage
憂い is a literary and elegant word. In sense 1, it describes a deep, poetic sadness — common in literature and artistic contexts. In sense 2, it describes worry or concern, often about larger issues like the state of society or the future.
The verb form 憂える means "to grieve over" or "to worry about."
Common collocations
- 憂いを帯びる: to be tinged with sorrow
- 憂いを含む: to contain sadness
- 備えあれば憂いなし: preparedness eliminates worry (proverb)
- 後顧の憂い: lingering worries about what one leaves behind