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刽子手 (guì zi shǒu) — executioner; headsman; (figurative) indiscriminate murderer; butcher

Definition

Literally the person who wields the executioner's blade (刽子 = executioner as a compound, 手 = one who does it). Today mostly used figuratively to call someone a butcher who kills without mercy.

noun
executionerheadsman(figurative) indiscriminate murdererbutcher
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • ，刽子手。
    Zài gǔ dài, guì zi shǒu shì yì zhǒng cán kù de zhí yè.
    In ancient times, executioners were a cruel profession.
  • 刽子手。
    Nà ge zhàn zhēng zhōng de dí jūn chéng le tú shā píng mín de guì zi shǒu.
    In that war, the enemy army became the butchers slaughtering civilians.
  • ，刽子手。
    Tā duì wú gū zhě de shāng hài, jiǎn zhí jiù xiàng guì zi shǒu yí yàng cán rěn.
    His harm to the innocent was as cruel as an executioner.

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.

刽子executioner
刽guìexecute子zǐperson
偏正Modifier + head
手shǒuperson

刽子 points to the executioner, and 手 adds the idea of a person who performs the act, giving 'headsman'.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

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

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

Open 子 →

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

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

Open 手 →
Appears in
Crime & Police

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