伏法 (fú fǎ) — to be executed (as a legal punishment)

Definition

Formal/legal term for a condemned criminal being executed under judicial sentence. Used in news and official writing, not everyday speech.

verb

to be executed (as a legal punishment)

伏法，。
Shā rén fàn zhōng yú fú fǎ, shòu hài zhě jiā shǔ dé dào le ān wèi.
The murderer was finally executed, and the victim's family found comfort.
，。
Tā yǐ jīng fú le fǎ, hòu huǐ yě wǎn le.
He has already been executed, and regret is too late.
伏法。
Zhè liǎng gè zuì fàn míng tiān jiù yào fú fǎ.
These two criminals will be executed tomorrow.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

法fǎlaw/punishment

The sense of being executed comes from 伏, submit, and 法, law or punishment.

Characters in this word

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

伏 combines 人 (person) and 犬 (dog), as a dog beside a person or a person taking a dog's low posture, to show lying prostrate.

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

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

廌廌zhìa type of antelope or caprid

Sound part声符shēngfú

盍

盍hé法fǎ

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

法's older form combined 氵 (water) and 廌 (a type of antelope or caprid), with 盍 as a sound part; later 廌 was dropped.

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