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脱手 (tuō shǒu) — (literal) to slip out of one's hands; (figurative) to dispose of, to sell off

Definition

A 离合词 (separable verb): 脱 means 'to slip/break free' and 手 is 'hand'. Literally something slips out of your grasp; figuratively it means to dispose of or sell off something you no longer want.

verb
(literal) to slip out of one's hands(figurative) to dispose ofto sell off

Examples

  • 脱手。
    Tā shǒu lǐ de bēi zi tuō shǒu le.
    The cup slipped out of his hand.
  • 脱手。
    Tā xiǎng bǎ jiù chē tuō shǒu.
    He wants to sell off his old car.
  • 。
    Nà pī cún huò zhōng yú tuō le shǒu.
    That batch of inventory finally got sold off.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

脱tuōslip off
手shǒuhand

To slip from the hand: 脱 expresses coming loose and 手 is the hand that loses its grip.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 脫; 脱 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
⺼Written in full as肉ròu
Sound part声符shēngfú
兌
兌duì脫tuō
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 脫 puts ⺼ (meat) beside 兌, which gives the sound; the simplified 脱 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the historical pieces.

Open 脱 →

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

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

Open 手 →
Appears in
Business & Commerce

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