死刑 (sǐ xíng) — death penalty; capital punishment

Definition

noun

death penaltycapital punishment

Measure word · 种

死刑。
Tā yīn móu shā zuì bèi pàn chǔ sǐ xíng.
He was sentenced to death for murder.
死刑。
Xǔ duō guó jiā yǐ jīng fèi chú le sǐ xíng.
Many countries have already abolished the death penalty.
死刑。
Guān yú sǐ xíng de biàn lùn zài shè huì shàng hěn jī liè.
The debate over capital punishment is very intense in society.

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.

刑xíngpunishment

“死” specifies death, and “刑” means punishment, together naming the punishment of death.

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

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.

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

井

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

刑 puts 刀 (knife) beside 井. The knife part shows the punishment idea, and 井 gives the sound.

Appears in