量刑 (liàng xíng) — sentencing; measurement of punishment (in crimi… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A legal term: the judge's decision on what punishment to give for a crime. Use only in criminal-law contexts, not everyday speech.

noun

sentencingmeasurement of punishment (in criminal law)

Examples

量刑。
Fǎ guān zài liàng xíng shí huì kǎo lǜ hěn duō yīn sù.
The judge considers many factors during sentencing.
量刑。
Zhè ge àn jiàn de liàng xíng jié guǒ yǐn qǐ le gōng zhòng tǎo lùn.
The sentencing result of this case sparked public debate.
量刑。
Xíng fǎ zhōng duì liàng xíng yǒu míng què de guī dìng.
The criminal law has clear provisions on sentencing.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

量liángmeasure

刑xíngpenalty

量 measure and 刑 penalty together name the measuring of punishment.

Characters in this word

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

日日rìsun
東東dōngbag; east

量 has 日 (sun) over 東 (bag; east). Some explanations suggest measuring under the sun or the sun rising in the east, but the exact origin is unclear.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

井

井jǐng刑xíng

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

刑 puts 刀 (knife) beside 井. The knife part shows the punishment idea, and 井 gives the sound.

Appears in

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