违禁品 (wéi jìn pǐn) — contraband goods; prohibited articles

Definition

A formal/law-enforcement term for items that are legally banned from import, export, or possession — used in customs and legal contexts, not everyday speech.

noun
contraband goodsprohibited articles
Measure word · 件

Examples

  • 违禁品。
    Hǎi guān chá huò le yì pī wéi jìn pǐn.
    Customs seized a batch of contraband goods.
  • 违禁品。
    Xié dài wéi jìn pǐn rù jìng shì wéi fǎ de.
    Bringing prohibited articles into the country is illegal.
  • 违禁品。
    Jī chǎng ān jiǎn yán gé jiǎn chá rèn hé kě néng shǔ yú wéi jìn pǐn de wù pǐn.
    Airport security strictly inspects any items that might be contraband.

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.

违禁violate a prohibition
违wéiviolate禁jìnprohibition
动宾Verb + object
品pǐngoods

违禁 means breaking a ban, and 品 means goods, so the whole refers to prohibited goods.

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 違; 违 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuò
Sound part声符shēngfú
韋
韋wéi違wéi
Same sound today

The traditional form 違 pairs 辶, which shows walking, with 韋 to give the sound. The simplified 违 is a later shorthand.

Open 违 →

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 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

品 repeats the same simple shape three times, representing various objects.

Open 品 →

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