荼

tú

余 + 艹

Definitions

tú thistle; common sowthistle (Sonchus oleraceus); bitter (taste); cruel; flowering grass in profusion

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 艹 represents the meaning and 余 represents the sound.

Semantic: 艹 Phonetic: 余

About

荼 is a phono-semantic compound: the grass radical 艹 (cǎo) indicates a plant, while 余 (yú) supplies the pronunciation. Historically it referred to a bitter weed or unpalatable flowering plant, and it is the structural precursor of 茶 (tea), which later became a separate character. Owing to this association with bitterness, 荼 often appears in idioms and classical texts as a metaphor for suffering and hardship.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

暴力游戏荼毒儿童。

Bàolì yóuxì túdú értóng.

Violent games poison children.

不良信息荼毒青少年。

Bùliáng xìnxī túdú qīngshàonián.

Bad information poisons teenagers.

院子里的荼蘼花开了。

Yuànzi lǐ de túmí huā kāile.

The roses in the yard have bloomed.

网络谣言荼毒社会风气。

Wǎngluò yáoyán túdú shèhuì fēngqì.

Online rumors poison the social atmosphere.

这种毒素荼毒人体健康。

Zhè zhǒng dúsù túdú réntǐ jiànkāng.

This kind of toxin poisons human health.

战争荼毒了无数平民的生活。

Zhànzhēng túdúle wúshù píngmín de shēnghuó.

War has poisoned the lives of countless civilians.

那些极端思想荼毒了年轻人的心灵。

Nàxiē jíduān sīxiǎng túdúle niánqīng rén de xīnlíng.

Those extreme thoughts have poisoned the minds of young people.

尽管有法律法规禁止，这种有害文化依然荼毒着脆弱社区。

Jǐnguǎn yǒu fǎlǜ fǎguī jìnzhǐ, zhè zhǒng yǒuhài wénhuà yīrán túdúzhe cuìruò shèqū.

Despite laws and regulations prohibiting it, this harmful culture still poisons vulnerable communities.

Related Characters

Component: 余

Component: 艹

荼