About
A phono-semantic compound, 逋 combines the movement radical 辶 (walking, running) with the phonetic 甫. Its original meaning is to flee or escape, especially evasion of responsibility, capture, or official duties. This gave rise to the extended sense of owing debts or being in arrears, as absconding was a way to avoid taxes and other financial obligations. It appears mainly in formal and historical texts, denoting fugitives, outstanding liabilities, or the act of absconding from official levies.
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