罪状 (zuì zhuàng) — charges; counts in an indictment; specification…

Definition

A formal legal term for the specific charges or counts listed in an indictment (one per 条). Distinct from the broader 罪 'crime/offense' itself.

noun

chargescounts in an indictmentspecification of offense

Measure word · 条

罪状。
Fǎ tíng xuān dú le bèi gào de liù tiáo zuì zhuàng.
The court read out the defendant's six counts.
罪状。
Lǜ shī zhèng zài yán jiū měi yì tiáo zuì zhuàng de fǎ lǜ yī jù.
The lawyer is studying the legal basis of each charge.
罪状，。
Jiǎn chá guān liè chū le xiáng xì de zuì zhuàng, bāo kuò tān wū hé shòu huì.
The prosecutor listed detailed charges, including embezzlement and bribery.

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.

状zhuàngstatement/form

罪 names the offense and 状 its stated form or list, so together they give the charges.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

罒非罪

罪 puts 罒 (a net, written fully as 网) over 非 (mistake).

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 狀; 状 is its simplified writing.

爿犬狀

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

爿

爿pán狀zhuàng

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 狀 pairs 犬 (dog) with 爿 as a sound component; the simplified 状 is a shorthand, not the historical shape.

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