猝

cù
adverb #67,087

Meanings

  1. 1 abruptly
  2. 2 suddenly; unexpectedly

Examples

HSK 6
Tā yīn xīnzàngbìng cùsǐ.
He suddenly died of a heart attack.
HSK 7-9
Xíjī lái de tài tūrán, tāmen cùbùjífáng.
The attack was so sudden they were caught off guard.

Tips

usage
Common in 猝不及防 (caught off guard by something sudden) and 猝死 (sudden death). It always stresses that something happens without warning.

Components

radical
犭 quǎn
dog; beast
Left 犭 is the dog radical 犬 in left-side form. The original image was a dog suddenly bursting out of cover to chase - the source of the 'abruptly' meaning.
phonetic
卒 zú
soldier; to finish
Right 卒 supplies the sound (zú drifting to cù). The same phonetic anchors 醉 (drunk) and 碎 (to shatter).

Stroke Order

猝 cù