扒窃 (pá qiè) — to pick pockets; to commit pocket-picking theft | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

扒窃 is a formal/legal verb meaning 'to pickpocket' — picking pockets as a specific type of theft, common in law-enforcement and news contexts rather than casual speech.

verb

to pick pocketsto commit pocket-picking theft

Examples

扒窃。
Jǐng chá zuó tiān zhuā le yí gè zài gōng jiāo chē shàng pá qiè de xiǎo tōu.
The police caught a thief who was picking pockets on the bus yesterday.
扒窃。
pá qiè Tā rén cái wù shì wéi fǎ xíng wéi.
Picking others' pockets is an illegal act.
扒窃。
Tā de qián bāo zài shāng chǎng bèi rén pá qiè le.
His wallet was pickpocketed in the mall.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéSide by side

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

扒bāpickpocket

The 扒 and 窃 both point to stealing, combining into the act of pocket-picking.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

手手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

八

八bā扒bā

Same sound today

扒 contains 手, a hand, showing an action done with the hand, and 八, which gives the sound.

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 竊; 窃 is its simplified writing.

米米mǐrice
攴攴pūaction
禼禼xiè

For 窃, the traditional form 竊 combines 米 and 攴 with 禼, which gives the sound.

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