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The character 黥 is a phono-semantic compound: the radical 黑 (black) on the left points to the ink or pigment used, and the component 京 (qíng) on the right supplies the pronunciation. It designates the ancient Chinese judicial practice of tattooing a criminal's face or body with black ink, leaving a permanent mark of shame and serving as a legal punishment. Because this penalty was abolished centuries ago, the character is now found only in historical, legal, and literary texts that deal with ancient penal codes and physical branding.
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