邪道 (xié dào) — depravity, immoral or corrupt path; heterodoxy, heretical doctrine or belief

Definition

Literary word for an 'immoral path' or 'heretical teaching' — used in writing or moral judgment, not everyday speech. Complements 正道, the 'righteous way'.

noun
depravityimmoral or corrupt pathheterodoxyheretical doctrine or belief

Examples

  • ，邪道。
    Tā yīn wèi tān cái, zuì zhōng zǒu shàng le xié dào.
    He ended up on the path of depravity because of greed.
  • 邪道，。
    Zhè zhǒng xué shuō bèi shì wéi xié dào, shòu dào le zhǔ liú xué pài de pī pàn.
    This doctrine is regarded as heterodoxy and has been criticized by mainstream schools.
  • ，邪道。
    Nián qīng rén yào míng biàn shì fēi, bú yào wù rù xié dào.
    Young people must distinguish right from wrong and not stray into the wrong path.

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.

邪xiéevil
道dàopath

邪 means evil, and 道 means path or teaching, so it denotes a corrupt path.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
邑邑yìtown; city
Sound part声符shēngfú
牙
牙yá邪xié
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

邪 puts 牙 beside 邑 (town; city): 牙 gives the sound, and 邑 shows it was first used in a place name. It was later used for strange or evil meanings.

Open 邪 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
行行xíngstreet
止止zhǐfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
𩠐
首shǒu道dào
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

Early 道 showed a street 行, a foot 止, and a part written 首 or 𩠐; the right part of 行 later disappeared.

Open 道 →

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