铡刀 (zhá dāo) — hay cutter, fodder chopper; guillotine (historical execution device)

Definition

A bladed tool with a hinged blade used to chop fodder, and historically a term for the guillotine. Both senses are concrete nouns; the agricultural 'hay cutter' sense is the everyday meaning.

noun
hay cutterfodder chopperguillotine (historical execution device)
Measure word · 把
Easily confused

Examples

  • 铡刀。
    Nóng mín yòng zhá dāo qiē suì cǎo liào wèi niú.
    The farmer uses a hay cutter to chop fodder for the cows.
  • 铡刀，。
    Zhè bǎ zhá dāo yǐ jīng yòng le hěn duō nián, dāo kǒu hái shì hěn fēng lì.
    This hay cutter has been used for many years, and the blade is still very sharp.
  • ，铡刀。
    Lì shǐ shàng, zhá dāo yě céng bèi yòng zuò xíng jù.
    Historically, the guillotine was also used as an instrument of execution.

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.

铡zhácut
刀dāoknife

铡 is cutting, and 刀 is a knife, so 铡刀 is a cutting knife.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 铡 →

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

The shape of 刀 comes from a simple picture of a knife.

Open 刀 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.