殉职 (xùn zhí) — to die in the line of duty | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

殉职 (xùn zhí) means to die while performing one's job — almost always for public servants like police, firefighters, or soldiers. The verb frames the death as a sacrifice in service, not an accident, so it's used in formal writing and eulogies.

verb

to die in the line of duty

Examples

殉职。
Nà wèi jǐng chá zài zhí xíng rèn wu shí xùn zhí le.
That police officer died in the line of duty while carrying out a mission.
。
Xiāo fáng yuán qù nián zài yí cì dà huǒ zhōng xùn le zhí.
The firefighter died in the line of duty last year in a big fire.
殉职，。
Tā wèi bǎo hù guó jiā cái chǎn ér xùn zhí, wǒ men yǒng yuǎn huái niàn tā.
He died in the line of duty protecting state property; we will forever remember him.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

殉xùndie for

殉 “die for” and 职 “duty” combine to mean dying while serving one's duty.

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.

歹旬殉

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

旬

旬xún殉xùn

Same sound today

The left part 歹 relates to death, and the right part 旬 gives the sound.

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 職; 职 is its simplified writing.

耳戠職

Meaning part形符xíngfú

耳耳ěrear

Sound part声符shēngfú

戠

戠zhí職zhí

Same sound today

The traditional form 職 pairs 耳 (ear) with 戠, which gives its sound; the simplified 职 is a shorthand, so its parts are not the historical parts.

Appears in

Professions & Jobs

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