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私通 (sī tōng) — to commit adultery; to have secret communication (with an enemy or foreign power)

Definition

Literary/formal verb with two unrelated senses: secret collusion with an enemy or foreign power, and adultery. In modern Chinese, 私通 (collusion) is most often used in political/legal contexts; for adultery, 通奸 is the neutral everyday term.

verb
to commit adulteryto have secret communication (with an enemy or foreign power)

Examples

  • 私通。
    Tā yīn yǔ lín jū sī tōng bèi qī zi fā xiàn.
    He was discovered by his wife for committing adultery with a neighbor.
  • 私通。
    Zhè wèi guān yuán bèi zhǐ kòng sī tōng wài dí.
    This official was accused of having secret communication with the enemy.
  • 私通。
    Gǔ dài fǎ lǜ duì sī tōng de chǔ fá fēi cháng yán lì.
    Ancient laws imposed very severe punishments for adultery/secret communication.

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.

私sīsecret
通tōngcommunicate

私 means secret and 通 means connect, yielding secret communication or an illicit liaison.

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
禾禾hé
Sound part声符shēngfú
厶
厶sī私sī
Same sound today

私 combines 禾 and 厶; 厶 originally represented the word, and 禾 was added later.

Open 私 →

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
辶Written in full as辵chuò
Sound part声符shēngfú
甬
甬yǒng通tōng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

通 pairs 辶, a part associated with movement, with 甬, which gives the sound.

Open 通 →
Appears in
Conflict & AgreementRomance & Marriage

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