拐子 (guǎi zǐ) — abductor, kidnapper; swindler, cheat; crutch

Definition

A colloquial term with two unrelated meanings: a swindler or kidnapper, and a crutch. In writing, prefer 拐骗者 for a kidnapper and 拐杖 for a crutch.

noun

abductorkidnapperswindlercheatcrutch

Measure word · 个

拐子，。
Jǐng chá zhuā zhù le nà ge guǎi zǐ, jiù chū le hái zi.
The police caught that abductor and rescued the child.
拐子，。
Tā shì gè guǎi zǐ, piàn zǒu le lǎo rén de qián.
He is a swindler who cheated the old man out of his money.
，拐子。
Yé ye zǒu lù bù fāng biàn, xū yào zhǔ zhe yì gēn guǎi zǐ.
Grandpa has difficulty walking and needs to use a crutch.

Derived word

构词法gòucífǎ

后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

拐guǎiabduct; crooked

子zǐperson/thing

拐 suggests abducting or bending, and 子 adds a person or thing sense, so 拐子 can mean a kidnapper or a crutch.

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

扌Written in full as手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

冎

冎guǎ拐guǎi

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

拐 pairs 扌, a hand radical written in full as 手, with 冎, which provides the sound guǎ.

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

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.