战死 (zhàn sǐ) — to die in battle | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

verb

to die in battle

Examples

战死。
Xǔ duō shì bīng zài zhàn chǎng shàng zhàn sǐ le.
Many soldiers died in battle on the battlefield.
战死。
Tā nìng kěn zhàn sǐ yě bù tóu xiáng.
He would rather die in battle than surrender.
战死。
Zhè ge gù shi jiǎng de shì sān wèi yīng xióng zhàn sǐ shā chǎng de shì.
This story is about three heroes who died in battle.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

战 means fight and 死 means die; together they mean to die in battle.

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.

占戈战

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

占

占zhàn战zhàn

Same sound today

战 pairs 占, which gives its sound, with 戈, a weapon.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

尸

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.

Appears in

Military & Defense

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