Definition
杀人 is a separable verb (离合词) meaning 'to kill someone' or 'to commit murder'. The verb 杀 and the object 人 can be split by aspect markers (了, 过), measure words, or complements: 杀了两个人 ('killed two people'), 杀过人 ('has killed before'). In legal contexts, 杀人 refers to the crime of homicide. Note that the direct object of the killing is not placed after 杀人 — instead, say 杀了 [someone] or use 把/被 constructions.
v.o.
to kill someoneto commit murder(law) homicide
Examples
- 杀人。Tā shā rén hòu táo dào le guówài.After killing someone, he fled abroad.
- 。Jǐngfāng shuō tā céngjīng shā guò liǎng ge rén.The police said he had killed two people before.
- 杀人。Zhè qǐ shìjiàn bèi rèndìng wéi gùyì shā rén.This incident was classified as intentional homicide.
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