贼船 (zéi chuán) — pirate ship; criminal gang (often in the idiom 上贼船)

Definition

Literally 'pirate ship', but 贼船 is mainly used in the idiom 上贼船 — meaning to fall in with a criminal gang or a trap you can't easily leave. The literal 'pirate ship' sense is rare.

noun
pirate shipcriminal gang (often in the idiom 上贼船)
Measure word · 艘

Examples

  • 贼船。
    Nà sōu zéi chuán yǐ jīng chén mò le.
    That pirate ship has already sunk.
  • 贼船。
    Tā hòu huǐ shàng le zéi chuán.
    He regrets boarding the pirate ship (joining the criminal gang).
  • 贼船，。
    Zhè ge gōng sī jiù shì gè zéi chuán, jìn qù jiù chū bù lái le.
    This company is a pirate ship; once you get in, you can't get out.

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.

贼zéithief
船chuánship

贼 'thief' and 船 'ship' build the idea of a pirate ship.

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 賊; 贼 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
戈戈gēweapon
Sound part声符shēngfú
則
則zé賊zéi
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional 賊 combines 戈, a weapon, with 則 to give the pronunciation; the simplified 贼 is a later shorthand and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 贼 →

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
舟舟zhōuboat
Sound part声符shēngfú
㕣
㕣㕣船
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

船 pairs 舟 (boat) with 㕣 for its sound.

Open 船 →

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