毒物 (dú wù) — poisonous substance, poison | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

poisonous substancepoison

Measure word · 种

Examples

毒物。
Zhè zhǒng dú wù duì rén tǐ fēi cháng yǒu hài.
This kind of poison is very harmful to the human body.
。
Shí yàn shì lǐ yán jìn luàn fàng dú wù.
It is strictly forbidden to leave poisonous substances around in the lab.
毒物。
Wù shí dú wù hòu yào lì kè jiù yī.
After accidentally ingesting poison, seek medical attention immediately.

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

'毒' means poison and '物' means thing or substance, so it denotes a poisonous substance.

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.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

牛勿物

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

勿

勿wù物wù

Same sound today

物 puts 牛 beside 勿: 牛 gives the meaning, and 勿 gives the sound.

Appears in

Materials & Substances

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.