巫术 (wū shù) — witchcraft, sorcery | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

witchcraftsorcery

巫术。
Gǔ dài de rén xiāng xìn wū shù kě yǐ zhì bìng.
Ancient people believed witchcraft could cure diseases.
巫术。
Diàn yǐng lǐ wū shī yòng wū shù zhào huàn le yōu líng.
In the movie, the wizard used sorcery to summon a ghost.
巫术。
Zhè běn shū jì lù le gǔ dài de shén mì wū shù yí shì.
This book records ancient mysterious sorcery rituals.

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.

巫wūshaman or witch

术shùart or technique

巫, a shaman or witch, with 术, an art or technique, means sorcery.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

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 術; 术 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

行行xíngstreet, path

Sound part声符shēngfú

朮

朮zhú術shù

Same sound today

The traditional form 術 has 行 (street, path) beside 朮, which gives the sound; the simplified 术 is a later shorthand.

Appears in