杀害

• Pinyin: shā hài
• Hanzi breakdown: 杀 = 朱 (phonetic) + 殳 (weapon/strike) = to kill with force; 害 = 宀 (roof/shelter) + 亥 (phonetic/damage component) = harm, damage — 杀害 = to deliberately harm and kill

Meaning

To kill; to murder; to deliberately take someone's life. Used specifically for intentional homicide.

A formal legal and journalistic term emphasising deliberate, intentional killing. More specific and serious than the general 杀 (to kill). Typically appears in passive constructions: 被杀害 (was murdered). Contrasts with 误杀 (accidental killing) and 自卫杀人 (killing in self-defence).

Examples

1. 案件调查显示，受害者是在深夜返回公寓的途中遭歹徒跟踪并杀害的，警方已展开大规模排查工作。 The investigation shows the victim was followed by an assailant and killed late at night on the way back to their apartment, and police have launched a large-scale search.
2. 这部历史纪录片详细还原了那位爱国诗人被当权者秘密杀害的经过，令观众无不为之义愤填膺。 This historical documentary reconstructs in detail how that patriotic poet was secretly murdered by those in power, leaving viewers outraged.
3. 检察机关以故意杀害他人为由对嫌疑人提起诉讼，要求法院依法判处最高刑罚。 Prosecutors filed charges against the suspect for intentional homicide and asked the court to impose the maximum penalty under the law.

Usage Guide

Context: legal, crime, journalism, history

Tone: serious

Do Say

• 法庭审理期间，公诉人出示了多项关键证据，证明被告确系有预谋地杀害了受害者，而非出于激情冲动。(During the court proceedings, the prosecutor presented multiple key pieces of evidence proving that the defendant had premeditated the murder of the victim, rather than acting out of a momentary impulse.)
• 这位革命烈士在敌军占领期间拒绝出卖同志，最终被秘密杀害，其英勇事迹被载入当地史册永久纪念。(This revolutionary martyr refused to betray his comrades during the enemy's occupation and was ultimately killed in secret; his courageous deeds were recorded in local historical annals for permanent commemoration.)

Don't Say

• 他杀害了一只蚊子 — 杀害 is exclusively for the deliberate killing of human beings; use 打死 or 消灭 for killing insects, animals, or microbes

Origin & History

杀 = 朱 (red/vermilion, phonetic) + 殳 (weapon used to strike) = to strike and kill; 害 = 宀 (roof) + 口 (mouth) + 亥 (twelfth earthly branch) = to harm/damage

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal