删除

• Pinyin: shān chú
• Hanzi breakdown: 删 = 刂(knife radical) + 册 (bamboo book tablet) = to cut out from a record; 除 = 阜 (earthwork radical) + 余 (phonetic chú) = to clear away — together: to cut out and completely remove

Meaning

To delete or remove completely; to erase data, text, or content leaving no trace, whether from a document or a digital system.

More absolute than 删 alone — implies complete removal. In digital contexts: 删除文件 (delete a file), 永久删除 (permanently delete), 删除记录 (delete a record). In political or media contexts, 内容遭到删除 often implies administrative or platform-enforced censorship. Technically, 删除 may not guarantee irrecoverability unless preceded by 永久.

Examples

1. 用户误将重要合同文件移入回收站并彻底清空，导致原始文件被永久删除，公司不得不委托专业数据恢复机构尝试进行底层磁盘扫描。 A user accidentally moved an important contract file to the recycle bin and then emptied it completely, permanently deleting the original file. The company had to hire a professional data recovery firm to attempt a low-level disk scan.
2. 该社交平台以违反服务条款为由在未提前通知的情况下删除了这位博主的全部历史内容，引发了关于言论自由边界的广泛讨论。 Citing violations of its terms of service, the social platform deleted all of this blogger’s historical content without prior notice, sparking widespread debate about the boundaries of free speech.
3. 数据库管理员在执行批量删除操作之前必须确认已完成数据备份，并对删除条件的语法逻辑进行严格校验，以防因指令错误造成不可逆的数据损失。 Before executing a bulk delete, a database administrator must confirm that a backup has been completed and rigorously verify the logic and syntax of the deletion conditions, to prevent irreversible data loss caused by an incorrect command.

Usage Guide

Context: digital technology, data management, censorship, editing

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 根据公司信息安全政策，员工在离职时必须将个人设备中存储的所有涉密文件彻底删除，并由信息技术部门核查确认，以防商业机密外泄。(According to company information security policy, employees must thoroughly delete all classified files stored on personal devices upon resignation, with confirmation verified by the IT department, to prevent the leakage of trade secrets.)
• 研究人员发现，即使用户点击删除，一些应用仍会在服务器端保存行为数据多年，引发隐私担忧。(Researchers found that even if users click delete, some apps still keep behavioral data on servers for years, raising privacy concerns.)

Don't Say

• 我删除掉了那个文件 — 删除 already contains the sense of completion; 掉 is redundant; simply say 我删除了那个文件 or 我把那个文件删除了

Origin & History

删 = 刂(knife) + 册 (bamboo book) = to cut out from records; 除 = 阜 (earthwork/steps radical) + 余 (phonetic chú) = to clear away/remove — together: to cut out and clear away completely

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal