囚 (qiú) - prisoner & to imprison
囚 · qiú
prisoner;
to imprison;
to confine;
captive
prisonerto imprisonto confine
Usage highlights
prisonerto imprisoncaptiveprison celldeath row prisonerprisoner of war
Usage & contexts
Examples
- The prisoner (囚犯) was escorted to his cell.
- He was imprisoned (被囚禁) for his crimes.
- The hostage was held captive (被囚) for three days.
- This is a prison cell (囚室).
Collocations
- prisoner(囚犯)
- to imprison(囚禁)
- captive(囚徒)
- prison cell(囚室)
- death row prisoner(死囚)
- prisoner of war(战囚)
Idioms
- Prisoner's dilemma(囚徒困境)
- Like a bird in a cage(楚囚相对)
- Prisoner facing each other(楚囚对泣)
Cultural background
FAQ- The character depicts a person (人) enclosed within boundaries (囗), representing confinement.
- In classical Chinese texts, 囚 often refers to war captives or criminals.
- The concept appears in legal and military contexts throughout Chinese history.