剖 (pōu) — to cut open; to dissect; to analyze thoroughly (in 剖析)

Definition

Means 'to cut open / dissect', and in the compound 剖析 it means 'to analyze' a problem in depth. At HSK 7 it most often appears in 剖析; the literal 'cut open' sense is rare in everyday speech.

verb
to cut opento dissectto analyze thoroughly (in 剖析)
Easily confused

Examples

  • ，。
    Tā bǎ yú pōu kāi, qīng lǐ nèi zàng.
    He cut open the fish and cleaned the internal organs.
  • 剖。
    Yī shēng zhèng zài pōu shī tǐ zuò jiǎn chá.
    The doctor is dissecting the corpse for examination.
  • 。
    Zhè piān wén zhāng shēn kè dì pōu xī le shè huì wèn tí.
    This article deeply analyzes social issues.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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
刂Written in full as刀dāoknife
Sound part声符shēngfú
咅
咅pǒu剖pōu
Same sound today

剖 pairs 刂, a knife, with 咅 for sound, to write cutting something in two.

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