削 (xuē): to pare; to cut down; to reduce

Meanings

1 to pare; to cut down; to reduce
2 to strip away; to remove
3 to exploit

Characters

削

xuē

to pare; to cut down; to reduce

Examples

HSK 7-9

公司决定削减预算。

Gōngsī juédìng xuējiǎn yùsuàn.

The company decided to cut its budget.

HSK 7-9

这件丑闻大大削弱了他的权威。

Zhèjiàn chǒuwén dàdà xuēruò le tā de quánwēi.

The scandal greatly weakened his authority.

HSK 7-9

工人受到残酷的剥削。

Gōngrén shòudào cánkù de bōxuē.

Workers were ruthlessly exploited.

Tips

usage

The xuē reading is the abstract 'reduce / strip away' family and is the one used in most formal compounds: 削减 (to cut down), 削弱 (to weaken), 剥削 (to exploit), 瘦削 (gaunt). For the hands-on 'peel / whittle' sense use the xiāo reading. Taiwan pronounces this reading xuè.

Components

radical

刂 dāo

knife

刂 is the right-side form of 刀 (knife). It marks 削 as a cutting action and groups it with 切, 剪, 割 under the blade-action umbrella.

phonetic

肖 xiāo

resemble; small

肖 gives the sound xiāo directly, with the secondary reading xiào (resemblance). The 'small / diminished' flavour also sneaks into 削: to pare down or shave off material until something is reduced. Same phonetic in 消 (dissolve) and 销 (melt down).