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讼 (sòng) — lawsuit; litigation (bound form); dispute; legal argument (bound form)

Definition

讼 (sòng) is a bound form used only in legal terms like 诉讼 (litigation) and 讼案 (lawsuit case). It also names the ䷅ hexagram in the I Ching, meaning 'conflict'.

bound form
lawsuitlitigation (bound form)disputelegal argument (bound form)

Examples

  • 讼。
    Zhè ge sòng àn yǐ jīng shěn lǐ le sān gè yuè.
    This lawsuit case has been tried for three months.
  • 讼。
    Zhè chǎng shāng yè sòng zhēng chí xù le liǎng nián.
    This commercial litigation dispute lasted two years.
  • 讼。
    Lǜ shī bāng tā liǎo jiě le sòng fèi de suàn fǎ.
    The lawyer helped him understand how litigation costs are calculated.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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 訟; 讼 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánsay
Sound part声符shēngfú
公
公gōng訟sòng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 訟 pairs 言 (say) with 公, which supplies the sound; the simplified 讼 is a shorthand.

Appears in
Law & Justice

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