下手

• 拼音: xià shǒu
• 汉字拆解: 下 = to apply, place; 手 = pictograph of a hand with fingers — to put one's hand to an act

含义

To start; to act; to take action in a decisive or targeted way. Also: to commit an act of violence or crime. Used both for initiating a task and for carrying out a physical or harmful act.

Dual meaning: (1) neutral — to start working on something or make a move (无从下手 = don't know where to begin); (2) negative — to commit an act of violence, crime, or underhanded action. Context determines which sense applies. Common patterns: 无从下手 (have no idea where to start), 对某人下手 (to make a move against someone).

例句

1. 这道综合性数学题涉及多个知识点，初学者往往感到无从下手，需要教师系统引导解题思路。
2. 侦探分析了嫌疑人的行动轨迹，推断出凶手是在被害者独自返家的途中下手的。
3. 他在策划了数周之后终于决定下手，一口气向五家潜力客户发出了详细的合作提案。

用法指南

语境: task initiation, crime, strategy

语气: neutral

正确说法

• 面对结构庞杂的课题，许多新人不知如何下手，这说明立项时先做文献梳理很重要。(Faced with a complex topic, many newcomers do not know how to begin, which shows that literature review is crucial at the project-planning stage.)
• 警方发现，嫌犯专挑监控盲区下手，说明他事先踩点充分，也有反侦查意识。(Police found that the suspect chose to strike in a surveillance blind spot, showing careful prior scouting and anti-investigation awareness.)

错误说法

• 下手 when simply meaning 'to begin' in formal written contexts — use 着手 or 开始; 下手 is more colloquial and often implies decisive, sometimes aggressive action; 着手 is the neutral formal equivalent for starting a task

起源与历史

下 (to apply, place) + 手 (hand) — to put one's hand to something; to take action using one's hands

文化背景

世代: All ages

社会背景: Universal