击毙 (jī bì) — to shoot dead (formal, used in law enforcement,… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Formal verb meaning 'to shoot dead', used in news, police, and military contexts. More official-sounding than 打死了, which is the everyday spoken phrasing.

verb

to shoot dead (formal, used in law enforcement, military, or news reports)

Examples

击毙。
Jǐng chá jī bì le yì míng zuì fàn.
The police shot and killed a criminal.
，击毙。
Zài chōng tū zhōng, sān míng kǒng bù fèn zǐ bèi jī bì.
In the conflict, three terrorists were shot dead.
击毙。
Tā shì tú táo pǎo shí bèi jǐng fāng jī bì.
He was shot dead by police while trying to escape.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

击jīstrike

'击' gives striking and '毙' gives death, so the result is shot dead.

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 擊; 击 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

手手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

毄

毄jī擊jī

Same sound today

The traditional form 擊 has 手 (hand) and 毄; 毄 gives the sound and also points to striking, while the simplified 击 is a later shorthand.

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 斃; 毙 is its simplified writing.

敝死斃

Meaning part形符xíngfú

死死sǐdeath

Sound part声符shēngfú

敝

敝bì斃bì

Same sound today

The traditional form 斃 combines 死, meaning death, with 敝, which gives the sound. The simplified 毙 is a later shorthand.

Appears in

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