抹煞 (mǒ shā) — to deny, to obliterate, to blot out (facts, achievements, contributions)

Definition

Strong, written-style verb meaning 'to deny / blot out' facts, contributions, or history — stronger than simply 否认 ('to deny'). Almost always used in negative or prohibitive contexts like 不能被∼, and pairs naturally with 被.

verb
to denyto obliterateto blot out (facts, achievements, contributions)
Easily confused

Examples

  • 抹煞。
    Tā de gòng xiàn bù néng bèi mǒ shā.
    His contributions cannot be denied.
  • 抹煞。
    Nǐ zhè yàng zuò shì zài mǒ shā lì shǐ shì shí.
    What you are doing is denying historical facts.
  • 抹煞。
    Wǒ men bú yīng gāi mǒ shā rèn hé rén de nǔ lì.
    We should not deny anyone's efforts.

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.

抹mǒwipe out
煞shàkill

The actions of wiping out and killing combine to mean blotting out facts.

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
扌Written in full as手shǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
末
末mò抹mǒ
Same sound today

The left part 扌 is the hand component 手, showing an action done with the hand; the right part 末 gives the pronunciation.

Open 抹 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 煞 →

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