枯死 (kū sǐ) — to wither and die (of plants)

Definition

A vivid verb meaning plants dry up and die, typically from drought. The resultative 死 emphasizes the final death (withered AND dead), unlike 枯 alone which just means withered.

verb
to wither and die (of plants)

Examples

  • 枯死。
    Nà kē lǎo shù zhōng yú kū sǐ le.
    That old tree finally withered and died.
  • ，枯死。
    Yóu yú cháng qī gān hàn, xǔ duō zhuāng jia dōu kū sǐ le.
    Due to prolonged drought, many crops withered and died.
  • ，枯死。
    Zhè piàn sēn lín rú guǒ zài bú jiàng yǔ, hěn kuài jiù huì kū sǐ.
    If it doesn't rain soon, this forest will quickly wither and die.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

枯kūwither
死sǐdie

It describes a plant drying up until it dies, with 枯 'wither' and 死 'die' showing the result.

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
木木mùtree
Sound part声符shēngfú
古
古gǔ枯kū
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

枯 pairs 木 (tree) with 古, which gives the sound.

Open 枯 →

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
歹歹dǎi
Sound part声符shēngfú
尸
尸shī死sǐ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

死 is built from 歹 and 尸: 歹 is the part tied to the meaning, and 尸 gives the sound.

Open 死 →

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