人质 (rén zhì) — hostage | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

hostage

Measure word · 个

Examples

人质，。
Tā men bǎng jià le rén zhì, yāo qiú yí dà bǐ shú jīn.
They kidnapped a hostage and demanded a large ransom.
人质。
Tán pàn zhuān jiā zhèng xiǎng bàn fǎ ān quán jiù chū rén zhì.
The negotiator is trying to find a way to safely rescue the hostage.
，。
Zuò wéi yì míng rén zhì, tā biǎo xiàn dé fēi cháng lěng jìng.
As a hostage, she was a hostage, she acted very calmly.

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.

Combines 人 and 质 to mean a person held as a pledge or security.

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 質; 质 is its simplified writing.

斦貝質

斦斦yín
貝貝bèi

The traditional form 質 is made up of 貝 and 斦; this describes 質, not the simplified 质.

Appears in

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