Dong Chinese dictionary

zéi

thief

Phonosemantic compound. 戎 represents the meaning and 貝 represents the sound.

Components

戎 Meaning component

róng

arms

貝 Sound component

bèi

sea shell

Evolution

Bronze script

Late Western Zhou (~800 BC)

Seal script

Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical script

Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Regular script

Modern

Definitions

zéi

thief, traitor; thief; traitor; wily; deceitful; evil; extremely

Most common words with 賊

Sources