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失身 (shī shēn) — to lose one's virginity

Definition

Formal/written verb meaning 'to lose one's virginity' (especially outside marriage or by force), often with serious or shameful connotations. The literal sense 'to fall into danger' is rare in modern use.

verb
to lose one's virginity

Examples

  • ，失身。
    Zài gǔ dài, nǚ zǐ shī shēn bèi shì wéi jí dà de chǐ rǔ.
    In ancient times, a woman losing her virginity was seen as a great shame.
  • 。
    Tā zài nà cì shì jiàn zhōng shī le shēn.
    She lost her virginity in that incident.
  • 失身。
    Xiǎo shuō zhōng de nǚ zhǔ jué yīn wèi bèi pò shī shēn ér tòng kǔ bù yǐ.
    The heroine in the novel was in great pain because she was forced to lose her virginity.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

失shīlose
身shēnbody/self

失 (lose) and 身 (body/self) suggest losing one's bodily integrity, hence virginity or danger.

Characters in this word

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

The shape is explained as a fallen person's footprint surrounded by drops of blood; another reading pairs 手 (hand) and 乙 to show something falling from a hand.

Open 失 →

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

The shape of 身 comes from a drawing of a pregnant woman.

Open 身 →
Appears in
Romance & Marriage

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