死难者 (sǐ nán zhě) — victim of a disaster or tragic incident (war, accident, natural disaster); martyr who died for a cause or country

Definition

A formal/literary noun for those who died in a disaster, accident, or war — like 'the fallen' or 'victims'. Used in memorials, monuments, and official writing rather than everyday speech.

noun
victim of a disaster or tragic incident (war, accident, natural disaster)martyr who died for a cause or country
Measure word · 位

Examples

  • 死难者。
    Zhè cì dì zhèn de sǐ nán zhě míng dān yǐ jīng gōng bù le.
    The list of victims of this earthquake has been released.
  • 死难者。
    Jì niàn bēi shàng kè zhe suǒ yǒu sǐ nán zhě de míng zì.
    All the names of the deceased are engraved on the memorial.
  • 死难者。
    Guó jiā wèi zhè xiē sǐ nán zhě jǔ xíng le lóng zhòng de dào niàn yí shì.
    The state held a solemn memorial ceremony for these fallen.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

死难died in disaster
死sǐdie难nándisaster
动宾Verb + object
者zhěperson who

The dying-in-disaster sense of 死难, together with 者 for 'person who', names a victim or martyr.

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
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 →

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 難; 难 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
隹隹zhuībird
Sound part声符shēngfú
暵
暵hàn難nán
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional 難 pairs 隹, a bird, with 暵 for sound, and meant a type of bird. It was later borrowed for other meanings; the modern 难 is a shorthand.

Open 难 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The form 者 originally drew a sugarcane with full stems, small points around it, and an open smiling mouth at the bottom.

Open 者 →

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