蜕皮 (tuì pí) — to molt; to shed skin, shell, or exoskeleton

Definition

Refers specifically to animals (reptiles, insects, crustaceans) shedding their outer skin, shell, or exoskeleton as part of growth. The verb 蜕 emphasizes the biological process itself, not the cast-off skin.

verb
to moltto shed skinshellor exoskeleton
Easily confused

Examples

  • 蜕皮。
    Shé měi nián dōu yào tuì pí jǐ cì.
    Snakes molt several times every year.
  • 。
    Zhè zhī chán gāng tuì le yí cì pí.
    This cicada just molted once.
  • 蜕皮。
    Guān chá kūn chóng tuì pí de guò chéng fēi cháng yǒu qù.
    Watching the molting process of insects is very interesting.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

蜕tuìshed
皮pískin

蜕 means to shed and 皮 is skin, so the word describes shedding skin.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 蜕 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

皮 shows a hand pulling fur off an animal pelt, with the pelt drawn at the upper left.

Open 皮 →

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