歹
dǎi HSK7

evil, bad

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approved by Prismcool · Oct 31, 2025, 01:53 AM · Reviewed by Prismcool on Oct 31, 2025, 01:53 AM

changed origin

Changed fields: hint, originalMeaning, customSources

Original meaning: cracked wooden post

Variant of 歺. Depicts a wooden post or digging tool with a cracked bottom. Similar to 才. The meaning later shifted to "bad" and "evil".

Character Evolution

Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Regular Modern

Historical Pronunciations

Old Chinese
Zhengzhangŋaːd

說文解字

《說文》：“歹，骨之殘也。从半冎。讀若櫱岸之櫱。，古文歺。”

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫季旭昇《說文新證》p.333
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Zhengzhang Shangfang
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)