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卒 (cù) — (bound form) sudden, abrupt (used in compound words)

Definition

卒 (cù) is a bound literary morph meaning 'sudden, abrupt' — it only appears inside set compounds such as 卒中, 卒然, and 卒不及防. Use 突然 instead when you need a standalone adverb.

bound form
suddenabrupt (used in compound words)

Examples

  • 卒。
    Tā yīn cù zhōng zhù jìn le yī yuàn.
    He was hospitalized because of a stroke.
  • 卒，。
    Shì qing cù rán fā shēng, dà jiā dōu méi yǒu zhǔn bèi.
    The incident suddenly happened; no one was prepared.
  • 卒，。
    Zhè chǎng yǔ lái de cù bù jí fáng, wǒ quán shēn dōu shī tòu le.
    The rain came so abruptly that I got soaked through.

Origin

Compound ideograph
六书liùshū
会意huìyì

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

Early forms of 卒 drew a completed piece of clothing, with a mark showing it was to be folded.

Appears in
Time (Abstract)

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