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禁锢 (jìn gù) — to imprison, to keep in custody; to shackle, to bind, to restrict (thoughts, creativity, etc.)

Definition

A formal written verb meaning to imprison or shackle, often used figuratively for confining thoughts, creativity, or rights. Common in political, legal, and essay-style writing.

verb
to imprisonto keep in custodyto shackleto bindto restrict (thoughts, creativity, etc.)

Examples

  • 禁锢。
    Zhè zuò jiān yù jìn gù guò xǔ duō zhèng zhì fàn.
    This prison once held many political prisoners.
  • 禁锢。
    Jiù sī xiǎng jìn gù le rén men de xīn líng.
    Old ideas have shackled people's minds.
  • 禁锢。
    Fǎ lǜ bù néng jìn gù yán lùn zì yóu.
    The law must not restrict freedom of speech.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

禁jìnrestrict
锢gùlock up

The idea of restraint in 禁 combines with lock-up in 锢 to mean imprison or restrict.

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
示示shìaltar
Sound part声符shēngfú
林
林lín禁jìn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

禁 has 林 above 示, an altar. The 林 part gives the sound, and the altar part connects the character to taboo or restricted matters.

Open 禁 →

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 錮; 锢 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
金金jīnmetal
Sound part声符shēngfú
固
固gù錮gù
Same sound today

The traditional form 錮 pairs 金 (metal) with 固 for its sound; the simplified 锢 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the original components.

Appears in
Abstract ConceptsCrime & Police

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