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毒剂 (dú jì) — toxicant; toxic chemical agent

Definition

A technical/formal term for a 'toxic chemical agent' — closer to a weaponized or industrial chemical than everyday 'poison' (毒). Common in military, laboratory, and safety contexts.

noun
toxicanttoxic chemical agent
Measure word · 种

Examples

  • 毒剂。
    Zhè zhǒng dú jì duì rén tǐ fēi cháng yǒu hài.
    This kind of toxicant is very harmful to the human body.
  • 毒剂。
    Shí yàn shì lǐ cún fàng zhe duō zhǒng yǒu dú dú jì.
    Various toxic chemical agents are stored in the laboratory.
  • 毒剂。
    Tā men zhèng zài yán jiū zhè zhǒng dú jì de jiě dú fāng fǎ.
    They are researching antidote methods for this toxicant.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

毒dúpoison
剂jìagent

毒 points to poison, and 剂 to a chemical preparation, giving a toxic agent.

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
屮屮chèvegetation
Sound part声符shēngfú
毐
毐ǎi毒dú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

毒 pairs 屮, a plant part, with 毐 as a sound part; this form was used for a poisonous plant.

Open 毒 →

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 劑; 剂 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
刂Written in full as刀dāo
Sound part声符shēngfú
齊
齊qí劑jì
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 劑, 齊 gives the sound and 刂 (刀, a knife) shows the meaning. The simplified 剂 is a later shorthand.

Open 剂 →
Appears in
Materials & Substances

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