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惩罚 (chéng fá) — to punish, to penalize

Definition

惩罚 (chéngfá) is a general 'to punish' verb for a wide range of contexts (legal, parental, school). Broader than 处罚 (formal/legal penalty) and 处分 (organizational discipline); more general than the narrowly monetary 罚款.

verb
to punishto penalize

Examples

  • 惩罚。
    Fǎ lǜ duì fàn zuì xíng wéi yǒu yán gé de chéng fá.
    The law has strict punishments for criminal acts.
  • 惩罚。
    Fù mǔ bú yīng gāi yòng dǎ mà lái chéng fá hái zi.
    Parents should not punish children by hitting or scolding.
  • 惩罚。
    Tā yīn wèi chí dào bèi chéng fá dǎ sǎo jiào shì yì zhōu.
    He was punished by having to clean the classroom for a week because he was late.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

惩chéngpunish
罚fápunish

惩罚 combines punish and punish to mean impose a penalty.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 懲; 惩 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
心心xīn
Sound part声符shēngfú
徵
徵zhǐ懲chéng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 懲 pairs 心 (heart) with 徵 as its sound part; the simplified 惩 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical components.

Open 惩 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 罰; 罚 is its simplified writing.

  • 詈詈lìabuse verbally
  • 刀刀dāoknife

The traditional form 罰 pairs 詈 (abuse verbally) with 刀 (knife); verbal abuse and improper use of a knife represent a crime. The simplified 罚 is a later abbreviation.

Open 罚 →
Appears in
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