TongTong
Sign in

害虫 (hài chóng) — pest, harmful insect

Definition

A pest or harmful insect — the specific insects (虫子) that damage crops, trees, or property. Pairs naturally with 消灭 ('eliminate') and 农药 ('pesticide').

noun
pestharmful insect
Measure word · 只

Examples

  • 害虫。
    Zhè xiē hài chóng zhèng zài chī diào wǒ men de shū cài.
    These pests are eating our vegetables.
  • 害虫。
    Nóng mín pēn sǎ nóng yào lái xiāo miè hài chóng.
    Farmers spray pesticides to eliminate pests.
  • 害虫。
    Zhè zhǒng hài chóng duì guǒ shù wēi hài hěn dà.
    This kind of pest does great harm to fruit trees.

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.

害hàiharmful
虫chónginsect

Insects that cause harm.

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.

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
宀宀mián
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
丯
丯jiè害hài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

害 was borrowed purely for its sound. Its old picture, possibly a house rafter, is unrelated to harm.

Open 害 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 蟲; 虫 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 蟲 is the one the reference discusses; 虫 is also a traditional character on its own.

Open 虫 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Insects

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