伤害
shānghài · HSK 4
harm
🤕 伤 (wound) + 害 (harm) — wound-harm = injury
伤 means wound or injury; 害 means harm or damage. Together they form a compound meaning to hurt or injure. Common in both physical and emotional contexts: 伤害他人 = harm others.
伤 — person radical 亻 + 㿝 (phonetic)
伤 is the simplified form of 傷. It combines the person radical 亻, indicating a human being affected, with a phonetic component derived from 昜. The original sense was a wound or injury to a person, which extended to mean 'to hurt,' 'injury,' and figuratively 'to grieve' or 'sorrow.'
害 — 宀 roof + 丯 (phonetic) + 口 mouth
Originally an ideograph showing harm spoken under a roof, with 宀 (roof/house) on top, a phonetic element 丯 in the middle, and 口 (mouth) below suggesting harmful speech. Over time it shifted from 'injury caused by words' to the broader senses of 'harm,' 'injure,' and 'fear.'