Chinese word

自杀

Pronunciation

Pinyinzì shā

Meaning

  • verbcommit suicide

Example

他想自杀。tā xiǎng zì shā

He wants to commit suicide.

Illustration for 自杀 (commit suicide)

More examples

她在社交媒体发帖后决定自杀。tā zài shè jiāo méi tǐ fā tiē hòu jué dìng zì shā

After posting on social media, she decided to commit suicide.

Core concept

A person deliberately brings their own life to an end.

Common phrases

  • 试图自杀shì tú zì shā

    attempt suicide

  • 被逼自杀bèi bī zì shā

    be driven to suicide

  • 决定自杀jué dìng zì shā

    decide to commit suicide

Similar words

死sǐ: To stop being alive.
上吊shàng diào: To end one's own life by hanging from a rope or similar object.

Definition in Chinese

个人主动结束自身生命的行为。gè rén zhǔ dòng jié shù zì shēn shēng mìng de xíng wéi

Word origin

自杀 (zìshā, "suicide") combines 自 (zì, "self") + 杀 (shā, "kill"), so its meaning is formed directly from the person who acts and the target of the act.

Usage tips

  • English commonly uses suicide as a noun, but Chinese uses 自杀 (zìshā, "suicide") directly as a verb, so it does not need an object meaning "oneself".

Other meanings

  • suicidenoun

Opposites

  • 活着huó zheliveverb

Related words

  • 自杀率zì shā lǜsuicide ratenoun
  • 自杀未遂zì shā wèi suìattempted suicidenoun

Word lists with this word