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贱民 (jiàn mín) — member of the lowest social class; underclass

Definition

贱民 (jiànmín) is a historical term for the lowest social caste (e.g., India's Untouchables), now considered offensive. Use it only in historical or academic contexts, not for modern people.

noun
member of the lowest social classunderclass

Examples

  • ，贱民。
    Zài gǔ dài, jiàn mín shì zuì dī de shè huì jiē céng.
    In ancient times, the underclass was the lowest social stratum.
  • ，贱民。
    Xiàn dài shè huì zhōng, jiàn mín yì cí yǐ jīng hěn shǎo shǐ yòng le.
    In modern society, the term 'underclass' is already rarely used.
  • 贱民。
    Tā bú yuàn yì bèi chēng wéi jiàn mín.
    He is unwilling to be called a member of the underclass.

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.

贱jiànlowly
民mínpeople

“贱” means lowly and “民” means people, so the word refers to people of low social status.

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 賤; 贱 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèi
Sound part声符shēngfú
戔
戔jiān賤jiàn
Same sound today

The traditional form 賤 uses 貝 to carry the meaning and 戔 for the sound; the simplified 贱 is a later shorthand.

Open 贱 →

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

The early form of 民 shows an eye pierced by a sharp cross-shaped implement, possibly linked to an injured or unclear eye.

Open 民 →
Appears in
Social Roles & StatusSociety & Public Life

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