Pictograph of a person whose face has been tattooed. In ancient China criminals were punished by having their faces permanently marked. Later writers reanalyzed the character as a chimney being blackened by fire, so the bottom component was written to look like 炎 (flame).
Notes
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Historical Evolution
黑
Oracle
(~1250-1000 BC)
黑
Bronze
Early Western Zhou (~1000 BC)
黑
Bronze
Early Spring and Autumn (~700 BC)
黑
Seal
Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
黑
Seal
Shuowen (~100 AD)
黑
Clerical
Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)
黑
Clerical
Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)
黑
Clerical
Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)
黑
Clerical
Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)
黑
Clerical
Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)
黑
Clerical
Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)
黑
Regular
Modern
Chinese
黑 [Hēi]
abbr. for Heilongjiang province 黑龍江|黑龙江[Hēilóngjiāng]
黑 [hēi]
black; dark; sinister; secret; shady; illegal; to hide (sth) away; to vilify; (loanword) to hack (computing)
Japanese
noun
- black
- black stone
- guilt; guilty person
Korean
흑 [黑]
black; A very dark color like a night sky with no light.; black stone; black piece; A black stone in the game of Go.
Example Sentences
CHINESE WORDS (200)
黑色 [hēisè] #2,380
black
黑人 [hēirén] #1,369
black person
黑暗 [hēi'àn] #1,655
dark
黑帮 [hēibāng] #3,179
bunch of gangsters
黑帮 [hēibāng] #3,179
bunch of gangsters
黑白 [hēibái] #10,543
black and white
黑夜 [hēiyè] #7,638
night
黑龙江 [Hēilóngjiāng] #61,078
Heilongjiang province (Heilungkiang) in northeast China, abbr. 黑, capital Harbin 哈尔滨
黑龙江 [Hēilóngjiāng] #61,078
Heilongjiang province (Heilungkiang) in northeast China, abbr. 黑, capital Harbin 哈尔滨
黑社会 [hēishèhuì] #8,352
criminal underworld
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items