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嫌疑人 (xián yí rén) — suspect (in a criminal investigation); the accused (person formally charged in court)

Definition

嫌疑人 (xiányí rén) refers to a person suspected of a crime before formal charges — distinct from the courtroom 'accused' (被告人). The example 法庭宣布嫌疑人无罪 uses it loosely for the defendant, but strictly it means 'suspect' during investigation.

noun
suspect (in a criminal investigation)the accused (person formally charged in court)
Measure word · 名

Examples

  • 嫌疑人。
    Jǐng fāng yǐ jīng suǒ dìng le sān míng xián yí rén.
    The police have identified three suspects.
  • 嫌疑人。
    Fǎ tíng xuān bù xián yí rén wú zuì.
    The court declared the accused not guilty.
  • ，嫌疑人。
    Jù bào dào, xián yí rén yǐ jīng rèn zuì.
    According to reports, the suspect has confessed.

Origin

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.

嫌疑suspicion
嫌xiánsuspicion疑yídoubt
联合Coordinate
人rénperson

嫌疑 combines 嫌 and 疑, both about suspicion, and points to a 人 suspected of something.

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
女女nǚwoman
Sound part声符shēngfú
兼
兼jiān嫌xián
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left part 女 connects the character to women, while the right part 兼 gives its sound.

Open 嫌 →

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

  • 大大dàstanding human figure
  • 夂夂zhǐtilted head with open mouth
  • 丨丨gǔncane

疑 depicts a standing figure 大 with a tilted, open-mouthed head 夂 and a cane 丨, a confused person looking around for direction.

Open 疑 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

Open 人 →
Appears in
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