兽
shòu HSK7

beast

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approved by Prismcool · Jan 23, 2026, 08:44 PM · Reviewed by Prismcool on Jan 23, 2026, 08:44 PM

Sources

Changed fields: customSources

Original meaning: to hunt

Depicts using a hunting tool (單) and a dog (犬) to hunt for and capture wild animals. Original form of 狩. 口 was later added as a distinguishing mark. The meaning later shifted to "beast". The traditional component 犬 was deleted for simplification.

Components

單
dān single
口
kǒu, kou mouth
犬
犬 Deleted component
quǎn dog

The traditional component 犬 was deleted for simplification.

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫李学勤《字源》p.1270劉志基《中國漢字文物大系》Vol. 14, p.393何琳儀《戰國古文字典:戰國文字聲系》p.218
Readings & variants
Unicode