杀 (shā) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

杀

shā[sha1]Tone 1

to kill, to slay, to murder

HSK 5

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殺

Guru Deep Dive

English · to kill, to slay, to murder

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:9

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (木 variant structure) and the right side (殳) must be well-balanced; keep the right side strokes sharp and descending cleanly.

Simplification Logic: Simplified from 殺. The left-top structure was simplified, and parts of the right side were streamlined for easier writing.

1. Meaning

to kill or slay

to weaken or reduce(dialect) to smart or sting(used after a verb) extremely or to a great extent

Verb / SuffixNeutral#action#violence#degree

Sample Usage

不要杀生。
bù yào shā shēng.
Do not take life.
气死我了！
qì sǐ wǒ le!
I am infuriated to death! (Note: 杀 is also used as an intensifier suffix in words like 累杀).

2. Sound

/[ʂa˥]/Tone: 55

杀

shāsha1

¯(55)

=shā

Initial Consonant

Type: Retroflex Fricative

Sounds like: sh sound with retroflex tongue curl

UnaspiratedRetroflex

Airflow Tactile Test: Hollow wind sound through curled tongue channel.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip curled back near the hard palate

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -a vowel group

Sounds like: -a rhymes with ah

Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'ah'.

Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.

Tone

T1 (55)

5 → 5 (55)

1st Tone (High-Flat)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 1 is a high, flat pitch that stays constant at the ceiling of your speaking voice.

👂

Listening trap: Confusing the retroflex 'sh' with the alveolar 's' (producing 'sā' instead of 'shā'). Remember to curl your tongue back for 'sh'.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Tone 1 is a high, steady flat line at the top of your vocal range, like holding a high musical note without wavering.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 9 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (木 variant structure) and the right side (殳) must be well-balanced; keep the right side strokes sharp and descending cleanly.

Simplification Logic: Simplified from 殺. The left-top structure was simplified, and parts of the right side were streamlined for easier writing.

4. Components

Radical 殳 · Weapon / Hurl Radical (weapon, staff, or striking tool)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 殳 (indicates striking or killing with a weapon)

The character combines a structure on the left (originally representing a tree or body) with the weapon radical (殳) on the right, graphically depicting the act of striking down with a weapon.

木 Tree / wood base element on the left
殳 Weapon / striking tool on the right

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

5· Phonetic Root: 杀 (shā)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally depicted a person or object being struck or subdued with a weapon (殳), evolving into the general concept of killing or defeating.

Semantic Evolution: From the physical act of striking with a weapon to killing, and later extended to mean reducing, weakening, or acting as an intensifier suffix.

The weapon radical 殳 frequently appears in ancient Chinese characters related to combat, weapons, and striking.

6. Sinosphere

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

Imagine a warrior using a wooden staff and a weapon (殳) to strike down an opponent, completely ending ('killing') the threat in one swift high stroke (Tone 1).

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

霞

xiárosy cloudsUses rain radical 雨 on top instead of the left-side structure.

假

jiǎfake / holidayUses person radical 亻 on the left.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

沙(shā)

沙 has the water radical 氵, meaning sand or pebbly beach, whereas 杀 has the weapon radical 殳.

刹(chà)

刹 has the metal radical 钅, used in Buddhist temple terminology (e.g., 刹那).

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

我们必须[___]灭害虫。

Clue: shā

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing 杀 (shā) with 沙 (shā) or getting the tone wrong by treating it as a dipping Tone 3 instead of a high flat Tone 1.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: When you see the character 杀, what is its primary meaning and Pinyin?

Production: How do you write the character for 'to kill / to slay' (shā)?

杀shāto kill, to slay, to murder

Speed:

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