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自虐 (zì nuè:) — to abuse oneself, to engage in self-harm or masochistic behavior

Definition

A verb for deliberately harming or punishing oneself, psychologically or physically — heavier than 自残 (self-harm) and distinct from everyday self-criticism. Often used clinically to describe a pattern of behavior, not a one-off act.

verb
to abuse oneself, to engage in self-harm or masochistic behavior

Examples

  • 自虐，。
    Tā jīng cháng zì nuè:, ràng rén hěn dān xīn.
    He often self-harms, which worries people.
  • 自虐。
    Zhè zhǒng zì nuè: de xíng wéi xū yào xīn lǐ zhì liáo.
    This kind of self-abusive behavior requires psychological treatment.
  • 自虐，。
    zì nuè: Bù jǐn shāng hài shēn tǐ, yě yǐng xiǎng xīn lǐ jiàn kāng.
    Self-abuse not only harms the body but also affects mental health.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
主谓zhǔwèiSubject + predicate

A small sentence frozen into a word: something, and what it does or is.

自zìself
虐nüèabuse

自 points to the self and 虐 to abuse, so the word describes a person abusing themselves.

Characters in this word

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

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

自 originally drew a nose. It was borrowed purely for its sound to write 自, so the picture and the meaning are unrelated.

Open 自 →

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

An early form of 虐 showed 虎 (a tiger) and 人 (a person), like a tiger about to eat a person; this picture later came to mean cruel or tyrannical.

Open 虐 →
Appears in
Mental Health

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