除恶 (chú ě) — to eliminate evil, to eradicate wickedness

Definition

除恶 (chú è) is a formal, written verb meaning 'to root out evil' — stronger and more literary than everyday 消灭, often used in slogans about law, justice, or governance.

verb
to eliminate evilto eradicate wickedness

Examples

  • 除恶，。
    Zhèng fǔ jué xīn chú ě, bǎo hù rén mín ān quán.
    The government is determined to eliminate evil and protect the people's safety.
  • ，。
    Tā men chú le è, ràng cūn zi huī fù le píng jìng.
    They eliminated the evil and restored peace to the village.
  • 除恶，。
    chú ě Wù jìn, bù néng liú xià hòu huàn.
    Evil must be eliminated thoroughly; no trouble should be left behind.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

除chúeliminate
恶èevil

除 (eliminate) + 恶 (evil) means to get rid of evil.

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
阜阜fù
Sound part声符shēngfú
余
余yú除chú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

除 is built from 阜 and 余, with 余 giving the sound.

Open 除 →

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 惡; 恶 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
亞
亞yā惡è
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 惡 pairs 心 (heart) as the meaning part with 亞 (yā) as the sound part; the simplified 恶 is a later shorthand.

Open 恶 →

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