TongTong
Sign in

杀虫剂 (shā chóng jì) — insecticide; pesticide

Definition

noun
insecticidepesticide
Measure word · 种

Examples

  • 杀虫剂。
    Nóng mín yòng shā chóng jì shā chóng.
    Farmers use insecticide to kill insects.
  • 杀虫剂。
    Zhè zhǒng shā chóng jì duì hài chóng hěn yǒu xiào.
    This type of insecticide is very effective against pests.
  • 杀虫剂。
    Shǐ yòng shā chóng jì de shí hou yào xiǎo xīn.
    Be careful when using insecticide.

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.

杀虫kill insects
杀shākill虫chónginsect
动宾Verb + object
剂jìpreparation

A preparation for killing insects: 杀 is kill, 虫 is insect, 剂 is the preparation.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 殺; 杀 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 殺 comes from an old drawing of a boar impaled in the head, with 人 and 又 added to show a person doing the killing; the simplified 杀 is a later abbreviation.

Open 杀 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 蟲; 虫 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 蟲 is the one the reference discusses; 虫 is also a traditional character on its own.

Open 虫 →

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 劑; 剂 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
刂Written in full as刀dāo
Sound part声符shēngfú
齊
齊qí劑jì
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 劑, 齊 gives the sound and 刂 (刀, a knife) shows the meaning. The simplified 剂 is a later shorthand.

Open 剂 →
Appears in
Agriculture & Farming

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.