- 海贼 hǎizéi pirate
- 盗贼 dàozéi robberrobber; thief
- 窃贼 qièzéi thief
- 乌贼 wūzéi cuttlefish
- 卖国贼 màiguózéi traitor
- 飞贼 fēizéi air marauderan intruding enemy airman or pilot engaged in raids
- 工贼 gōngzéi scabstrikebreaker; scab; traitor to the working class
- 偷车贼 tōuchēzéi car thiefa person who steals vehicles, especially cars
- 马贼 mǎzéi bandithorse-mounted brigands or outlaws who operate in groups
- 贼船 zéichuán dubious venturea criminal gang, reactionary organization, or a shady project that is difficult to leave once joined
- 做贼心虚 zuòzéixīnxū guilty conscienceTo feel guilty as a thief; to have something on one's conscience.
- 贼心 zéixīn evil intentevil intentions
- 盗墓贼 dàomùzéi grave robbera person who illegally digs up graves to steal buried valuables, artifacts, or cultural relics.
- 贼窝 zéiwō denthieves' lair
- 逆贼 nìzéi bandita rebel or lawless insurgent who commits crimes against the state
- 国贼 guózéi traitortraitor to the nation
- 贼喊捉贼 zéihǎnzhuōzéi shifting blameto cover up one's misdeeds by shifting the blame onto others or falsely accusing someone else; lit. a thief crying "Stop the thief!"
- 蟊贼 máozéi pestsinsects that damage cereal crop seedlings
- 奸贼 jiānzéi traitorA deceitful and treacherous person, especially one who betrays their country or leader.
- 乱臣贼子 luànchénzéizǐ rebelsrebels and traitors against their country or ruler
- 贼亮 zéiliàng brightexceptionally bright, shiny, or dazzling
- 贼眼 zéiyǎn shifty gazeA suspicious, sneaky, or thievish look in someone's eyes.
- 贼头贼脑 zéitóuzéinǎo furtivebehaving or looking in a suspicious, sneaky, or underhanded manner, like a thief
- 贼眉鼠眼 zéiméishǔyǎn shifty-eyedhaving a sneaky, suspicious, or crafty appearance
- 认贼作父 rènzéizuòfù betrayto treat an enemy or evildoer as one's benefactor; to sell oneself to the enemy
- 叛贼 pànzéi traitora person who betrays their country, organization, or cause; a renegade or rebel
- 枪乌贼 qiāngwūzéi squid
- 擒贼擒王 qínzéiqínwáng capture ringleaderto defeat the enemy by capturing their leader
- 独夫民贼 dúfūmínzéi tyranta tyrant and oppressor of the people; a traitorous dictator
- 贼害 zéihài to harm or murderto maliciously harm, injure, or murder someone, often through treacherous or clandestine means.
- 汉贼不两立 Hànzéibùliǎnglì irreconcilabletwo mortal enemies cannot coexist; originally referring to the historical impossibility of coexistence between Shu Han and Cao Wei
- 惯贼 guànzéi habitual thief
- 民贼独夫 mínzéidúfū tyrantA tyrant and oppressor of the people; a traitorous dictator.
- 误上贼船 wùshàngzéichuán join bad companyto mistakenly join a criminal gang or a corrupt organization
- 抓贼 zhuāzéi catch a thiefto catch a thief
- 山贼 shānzéi banditbrigand
- 贼寇 zéikòu bandits or rebelsbandits, insurgents, or rebellious groups who pillage and plunder.
- 对着和尚骂贼秃 duìzhehéshangmàzéitū insult indirectlyto insult someone indirectly or criticize them obliquely, typically by making pointed remarks in their presence without naming them directly
- 贼死 zéisǐ utterlycompletely or utterly (dialectal intensifier)
- 贼盗 zéidào thieves and robberscollective term for thieves, robbers, and criminals; people who commit theft or robbery.
- 吸血乌贼 xīxuèwūzéi vampire squidvampire squid (Vampyroteuthis infernalis)
- 贼秃 zéitū baldpate(derogatory) Buddhist monk
- 反贼 fǎnzéi dissidentA slang term for a political dissident, often used self-referentially by those in pro-democracy circles.
- 关门捉贼 guānménzhuōzéi trappingto catch a thief by closing his escape route (idiom)
- 作贼 zuòzéi thieveto be a thief
- 采花贼 cǎihuāzéi rapist
- 长尾贼鸥 chángwěizéi'ōu long-tailed jaeger(bird species of China) long-tailed jaeger (Stercorarius longicaudus)
- 闹贼 nàozéi be burglarized(coll.) to be burglarized
- 中贼鸥 zhōngzéi'ōu pomarine jaegerpomarine jaeger (Stercorarius pomarinus)
Sources
- Frequency data
- MTSU Chinese text computingSUBTLEX-CH