About
瘵 is a phono-semantic compound that historically served as a specific medical term for severe wasting diseases, most notably tuberculosis and similar chronic consumptive illnesses that slowly drained physical vitality. The character combines the sickness radical 疒, which envelops the top and left to signal a pathological condition, with the phonetic component 祭 (meaning "to sacrifice"), which gives it the pronunciation zhài. In modern usage, 瘵 is confined almost entirely to classical medical texts, traditional poetry documenting suffering, and historical pathology, since contemporary medicine has adopted entirely different, standardized terminology for tuberculosis.
Etymology Hide
Report an issue
Flag incorrect definitions, examples, etymology, etc.