Definitions

xiāo (verb) to peel; to pare; to cut
xuē (verb) to reduce; to remove

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. represents the meaning and represents the sound.

Semantic: Phonetic:

About

The character "削" is a phono-semantic compound consisting of the radical "刂" (knife) and the phonetic component "肖", which together originally denoted the physical action of scraping or cutting with a blade. Its meaning broadened from this concrete sense to encompass abstract forms of reduction or diminution, such as in the context of decreasing quantities or lowering status, while still retaining its fundamental association with removal or paring in various linguistic compounds.

Etymology Hide

Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我来铅笔。

Wǒ lái xiāo qiānbǐ.

I will sharpen the pencil.

爸爸苹果皮。

Bàba xiāo píngguǒ pí.

Dad peels the apple skin.

公司减了开支。

Gōngsī xuējiǎn le kāizhī.

The company cut expenses.

这场战争弱了经济。

Zhè chǎng zhànzhēng xuēruò le jīngjì.

This war weakened the economy.

他决定发为僧。

Tā juédìng xuē fà wéi sēng.

He decided to shave his head and become a monk.

商店正在价促销。

Shāngdiàn zhèngzài xuē jià cùxiāo.

The store is cutting prices for promotion.

政府计划减不必要的预算。

Zhèngfǔ jìhuà xuējiǎn bù bìyào de yùsuàn.

The government plans to cut unnecessary budgets.

过度捕捞严重弱了海洋生态系统。

Guòdù bǔlāo yánzhòng xuēruò le hǎiyáng shēngtài xìtǒng.

Overfishing has severely weakened the marine ecosystem.