剧毒 (jù dú) — deadly poison, highly toxic substance

Definition

noun

deadly poisonhighly toxic substance

Measure word · 种

剧毒，。
Zhè zhǒng huà xué wù zhì yǒu jù dú, bì xū xiǎo xīn chǔ lǐ.
This chemical substance is highly toxic and must be handled carefully.
，剧毒。
Bèi shé yǎo hòu yào lì kè jiù yī, yīn wèi tā de dú yè shì jù dú.
After being bitten by a snake, seek medical attention immediately because its venom is a deadly poison.
剧毒，。
Shí yàn shì lǐ cún fàng zhe duō zhǒng jù dú yào pǐn, zhǐ yǒu shòu quán rén yuán cái néng jìn rù.
The laboratory stores various highly toxic substances, and only authorized personnel may enter.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

剧 gives severe, 毒 gives poison, forming deadly poison.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 劇; 剧 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

刀刀dāoknife

Sound part声符shēngfú

豦

豦jù劇jù

Same sound today

The traditional form 劇 pairs 豦, which gives the sound, with 刀, a knife; the simplified 剧 is a later shorthand.

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

屮屮chèvegetation

Sound part声符shēngfú

毐

毐ǎi毒dú

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

毒 pairs 屮, a plant part, with 毐 as a sound part; this form was used for a poisonous plant.

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