p8nda
p8nda BETA
Home Dictionary Translate Flashcards Sign in

膑

臏
bìn
noun

Meanings

  1. 1 the kneecap; the patella
  2. 2 to remove the kneecaps (an ancient form of mutilating punishment)

Examples

他举鼎用力过猛，折断了膑骨。
Tā jǔ dǐng yònglì guòměng, zhéduàn le bìngǔ.
He strained so hard lifting the cauldron that he shattered his kneecap.
兵法家孙膑被处以膑刑，因此得名。
Bīngfǎjiā Sūn Bìn bèi chǔ yǐ bìn xíng, yīncǐ démíng.
The strategist Sun Bin had his kneecaps cut off, and so was called 'Bin'.

Tips

history
Two linked senses: the kneecap 膑骨, and the brutal ancient penalty of cutting it out. The strategist 孙膑, author of an art-of-war classic, was named for having suffered exactly this punishment.

Components

radical
⺼ ròu
flesh; meat (body radical)
The flesh radical ⺼ (body-form, not the moon). It marks the word as a body part — here the kneecap and the bone beneath it.
phonetic
宾 bīn
guest
Supplies the sound: standalone 宾 reads bīn, close to the bìn of this character. It is purely phonetic, carrying no meaning to the kneecap.

Stroke Order

膑 bìn