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残害 (cán hài) — to cruelly injure or kill; to mutilate

Definition

残害 means to brutally harm or destroy — physical harm to people (bodies, lives), not property or feelings. Implies cruelty and intent, stronger than neutral 伤害 ('hurt').

verb
to cruelly injure or killto mutilate

Examples

  • 残害。
    Zhàn zhēng cán hài le xǔ duō wú gū de shēng mìng.
    War cruelly killed many innocent lives.
  • 残害。
    Tā men yòng bào lì cán hài le duì shǒu.
    They used violence to cruelly injure the opponent.
  • 残害。
    Lì shǐ shàng yǒu hěn duō cán hài bǎi xìng de bào jūn.
    In history there were many tyrants who cruelly harmed the people.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

残cáninjure
害hàiharm

残 and 害 both mean harm, so 残害 describes cruelly injuring or killing.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 殘; 残 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
歹歹dǎivicious, bones
Sound part声符shēngfú
戔
戔jiān殘cán
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 殘 pairs 歹, a bone shape for injury, with 戔 for its sound; the simplified 残 is a later shorthand.

Open 残 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
宀宀mián
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
丯
丯jiè害hài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

害 was borrowed purely for its sound. Its old picture, possibly a house rafter, is unrelated to harm.

Open 害 →
Appears in
Crime & PoliceInjury & Disability

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