案犯 (àn fàn) — convicted criminal; culprit in a criminal case | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A formal/legal term for a criminal in a specific case, used in news reports and court contexts. It is a more technical equivalent of 罪犯.

noun

convicted criminalculprit in a criminal case

Measure word · 名

Examples

案犯。
Jǐng fāng zhōng yú zhuā zhù le nà ge àn fàn.
The police finally caught that criminal.
案犯。
Fǎ yuàn duì àn fàn jìn xíng le shěn pàn.
The court tried the criminal.
案犯。
Zhè ge àn fàn zài àn fā hòu táo pǎo le.
This criminal fled after the crime occurred.

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.

犯fànoffender

案 means case and 犯 means offender, naming someone involved in a criminal case.

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.

木安案

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

安

安ān案àn

Same sound today

案 pairs 木, a wood/tree shape, with 安, which is used for its sound.

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

𢎘

𢎘𢎘犯fàn

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

犯 combines 犬 and 𢎘: 犬 gives the meaning, and 𢎘 gives the sound.

Appears in

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