折磨 (zhé mó) — to torment, to torture | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

折磨 (zhémo) means prolonged mental or physical suffering — the focus is the painful ongoing experience, unlike 虐待 (cruel treatment of others) or 磨难 (hardship as a noun).

verb

to tormentto torture

Examples

折磨，。
Tā zhé mó zì jǐ, yīn wèi tài xiǎng niàn jiā rén le.
He torments himself because he misses his family too much.
折磨。
Cháng qī de shī mián zhé mó zhe zhè wèi lǎo rén.
Long-term insomnia torments this elderly person.
折磨。
Bié yòng zhè xiē xiǎo shì zhé mó wǒ le.
Don't torment me with these trivial matters.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

折zhétorment

磨mótorment

折 and 磨 both contribute a sense of torment, so the word means to torment or torture.

Characters in this word

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

屮𣏄𣏄a tree {{zh-m|*木}} cut in half
斤斤jīnaxe

The shape originally showed an axe (斤) cutting a tree in half; in 折 the left part is now written as a hand.

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

石石shírock

Sound part声符shēngfú

靡

靡mí磨mó

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

磨 combines 石, showing rock, with 靡 for the sound.

Appears in

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