About
The character 笞 is a phono-semantic compound with the bamboo radical 竹 on top, indicating its connection to bamboo objects, and the phonetic component 台 below. It refers to a thin bamboo strip, cane, or light wooden stick used as an instrument for corporal punishment. As a verb, it means to beat or flog with such a tool. In historical Chinese legal systems, 笞 was one of the standard categories of legal punishment, with the severity defined by the prescribed number of blows. This makes it a specific legal term rather than a general word for hitting.
Etymology Hide
