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作呕 (zuò ǒu) — to feel nauseous, to nauseate; to be disgusting, to be loathsome

Definition

Literary/strong verb meaning 'to feel nauseous, to be disgusted' — used for both physical nausea and deep moral revulsion. The first sense pairs naturally with 恶心 (nèxīn, also 'nausea/disgust') in writing.

verb
to feel nauseousto nauseateto be disgustingto be loathsome

Examples

  • ，。
    Wǒ zuò le yí cì ǒu, yīn wèi shí wù tài yóu nì le.
    I felt nauseous once because the food was too greasy.
  • 作呕。
    Tā de xíng wéi lìng rén zuò ǒu.
    His behavior is disgusting.
  • ，作呕。
    Kàn dào nà ge chǎng jǐng, wǒ bù jīn zuò ǒu.
    Seeing that scene, I couldn't help but feel nauseous.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

作zuòmake
呕ǒuvomit

作 (make) + 呕 (vomit) expresses the feeling of nausea.

Characters in this word

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

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
乍
乍zhà作zuò
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left side 亻 comes from 人, meaning 'person', and the right side 乍 gives the sound.

Open 作 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 嘔; 呕 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
區
區qū嘔òu
Same sound today

The traditional form 嘔 has 口 (mouth) and 區 as a sound part; this explains 嘔, not the form 呕.

Open 呕 →
Appears in
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