为害 (wéi hài) — to cause harm; to do damage

Definition

A formal/literary verb meaning 'to cause harm' or 'to do damage,' usually appearing in written or news-style contexts about threats to people, society, or the environment.

verb
to cause harmto do damage

Examples

  • 为害。
    Zì rán zāi hài cháng cháng wéi hài nóng tián hé cūn zhuāng.
    Natural disasters often harm farmland and villages.
  • 为害。
    Zhè zhǒng xíng wéi huì wéi hài shè huì zhì xù.
    This kind of behavior will harm social order.
  • 为害。
    Guò dù kāi fā duì shēng tài huán jìng wéi hài hěn dà.
    Excessive development does great harm to the ecological environment.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

为wèido
害hàiharm

为 “do” + 害 “harm” means causing damage.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 為; 为 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 為 showed a hand holding an elephant; the simplified 为 is a later shorthand.

Open 为 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
宀宀mián
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
丯
丯jiè害hài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

害 was borrowed purely for its sound. Its old picture, possibly a house rafter, is unrelated to harm.

Open 害 →

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