TongTong
Sign in

宰杀 (zǎi shā) — to slaughter (animals)

Definition

To slaughter (animals) for meat or as part of butchering. A formal, written term — more clinical than everyday 杀, and specifically implies killing livestock or game rather than people.

verb
to slaughter (animals)

Examples

  • 宰杀。
    Zhè jiā gōng chǎng měi tiān zǎi shā shàng qiān zhī jī.
    This factory slaughters thousands of chickens every day.
  • 宰杀。
    Tā men yòng chuán tǒng fāng fǎ zǎi shā shēng chù.
    They slaughter livestock using traditional methods.
  • 宰杀。
    Jìn zhǐ fēi fǎ zǎi shā yě shēng dòng wù.
    Illegal slaughter of wild animals is prohibited.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

宰zǎibutcher
杀shākill

宰 (butcher) and 杀 (kill) combine to mean slaughter animals.

Characters in this word

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

  • 宀宀miánhouse
  • 乂乂yìto govern

The lower part of 宰 comes from 乂, 'to govern'; with 宀, 'house', it makes a house of government.

Open 宰 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 殺; 杀 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 殺 comes from an old drawing of a boar impaled in the head, with 人 and 又 added to show a person doing the killing; the simplified 杀 is a later abbreviation.

Open 杀 →
Appears in
Agriculture & Farming

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.