罪 (zuì) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

罪

zuì[zui4]Tone 4

guilt, crime, fault

HSK 6

Multiple Readings (多音字):

Guru Deep Dive

English · guilt, crime, fault

Cached lesson

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Topology:Top-bottom

Strokes:13

Writing Balance Rule: The top component '网' (net) must be written wide and flat, while the bottom component '非' is balanced with symmetrical vertical strokes underneath.

1. Meaning

crime, guilt, or sin

blamefaulthardship or suffering

NounNeutral#law#morality#justice

Sample Usage

他犯了罪。
tā fàn le zuì.
He committed a crime.
这不能怪我，不是我的罪。
zhè bù néng guài wǒ, bú shì wǒ de zuì.
This cannot be blamed on me, it is not my fault.

2. Sound

/[tsu̯eɪ̯⁵¹]/Tone: 51

罪

zuìzui4

`(51)

=zuì

Initial Consonant

Type: Unaspirated Dental Sibilant

Sounds like: ts sound as in 'cats'

Unaspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: No air puff (sounds like 'ds' in English 'cards'). Tissue still.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip touches or rests lightly behind the back of the lower front teeth.

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -i vowel group

Sounds like: -uay sound as in 'sway'

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

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

Abbreviated Rhyme Rule: ui is short for uei

Tone

T4 (51)

5 → 1 (51)

4th Tone (High-Falling)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 4 starts high and plunges sharply to the bottom, identical to an emphatic 'No!' or a strict sentence of guilt.

👂

Listening trap: Do not confuse 'zuì' (zui4) with 'zhuì' (zhui3), which has a retroflex initial and a 3rd tone.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: A sharp downward chop with your hand, mirroring an authoritative judge's gavel strike.

3. Writing

Topology: Top-bottom · Strokes: 13 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The top component '网' (net) must be written wide and flat, while the bottom component '非' is balanced with symmetrical vertical strokes underneath.

4. Components

Radical 网 · Net Radical (net)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 网 (represents a net used to catch wrongdoers)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 非 (original sound: fēi)

A net (网) traps those who do wrong or are 'non-compliant' (非).

罒 Net variant at the top
非 Wrong, not, non-

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally, the oracle bone form depicted a net designed to catch fish or game, which later metaphorically extended to catching criminals in the net of the law. Over time, the character evolved to pair the net radical with '非' (wrong/error).

Semantic Evolution: Shifted from a literal hunting net to a legal and moral net capturing wrongdoing, crime, and guilt.

Ancient Chinese law viewed crimes as tearing holes in the social fabric, much like breaking a fishing net.

6. Sinosphere

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: ザイ / Kun: つみ

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

죄

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

Imagine a giant fishing NET (网) thrown over a criminal who did everything WRONG (非), trapping him and sealing his GUILT (罪).

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

罚

fápenalty, punishCombines net/boundary with speech or knife to indicate punishment.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

醉(zuì)

醉 has the 'syrupy/wine' radical (酉) on the left because you get drunk on alcohol, whereas 罪 has the 'net' radical (网) on top for catching criminals.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

他因为触犯法律而受到了应有的[___]。

Clue: zuì

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing '罪' (zuì - crime/guilt) with '醉' (zuì - drunk) due to identical pinyin and tone.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: When you see 罪, what does it mean and how is it pronounced?

Production: How do you write and pronounce the character for 'crime' or 'guilt'?

罪zuìguilt, crime, fault

Speed:

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