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处死 (chǔ sǐ) — to execute (a person), to put to death

Definition

处死 (chǔ sǐ) is the formal/written verb 'to execute (a person), to put to death,' used in legal, historical, and journalistic contexts.

verb
to execute (a person)to put to death

Examples

  • 处死。
    Fǎ guān xuān bù jiāng zuì fàn chǔ sǐ.
    The judge announced that the criminal would be executed.
  • 处死。
    Lì shǐ shàng xǔ duō fǎn kàng zhě bèi chǔ sǐ le.
    Many rebels in history were executed.
  • 处死。
    Zhè ge àn jiàn zuì zhōng pàn jué chǔ sǐ.
    The case ultimately resulted in a death sentence.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

处chùpunish
死sǐdeath

处 means punish or deal with and 死 means death, giving the sense of putting someone to death.

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 處; 处 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
夂夂zhǐ
几几jǐtable
Sound part声符shēngfú
虍
虍hū處chǔ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 處 pairs 虍, giving the sound, with 夂 and 几, a table, as meaning parts. The simplified 处 is a shorthand and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 处 →

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
歹歹dǎi
Sound part声符shēngfú
尸
尸shī死sǐ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

死 is built from 歹 and 尸: 歹 is the part tied to the meaning, and 尸 gives the sound.

Open 死 →
Appears in
Crime & Police

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