Meaning of 害
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to do harm to
- to cause trouble to
- harm
- evil
- calamity
How to use 害
害 works as a verb meaning to harm or to get someone into trouble, and as a noun meaning harm. It often appears in the pattern 害 + person + verb, meaning someone caused another person to suffer a result. 你害我迟到了。(Nǐ hài wǒ chídào le.) You made me late.
害 (hài) has a roof 宀 on top and a mouth 口 at the bottom. Picture harsh words spoken under one roof, causing harm to everyone in the house.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 害 with 割 (gē, to cut), which adds the knife radical 刂 on the right. Also note that in 厉害 (lìhai) the 害 is usually said in the neutral tone, not the full fourth tone.
害 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
害 hài · to do harm to · 10 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 害.
| 害怕 | hàipà | to be afraid; to be scared |
| 危害 | wēihài | to harm; to jeopardize; to endanger; harmful effect; damage |
| 伤害 | shānghài | to injure; to harm |
| 厉害 | lìhai | (used to describe sb or sth that makes a very strong impression, whether favorable or unfa |
| 损害 | sǔnhài | harm; to damage |
| 有害 | yǒu hài | destructive; harmful |
| 灾害 | zāihài | calamity; disaster |
| 杀害 | shāhài | to murder |
| 害羞 | hàixiū | shy; embarrassed |
| 受害人 | shòuhàirén | victim |
| 迫害 | pòhài | to persecute |
| 要害 | yàohài | vital part; (fig.) key point |
Questions about 害
What does 害 mean?
害 (hài) means "to do harm to; to cause trouble to" and is used as a noun and verb.
How do you write 害?
害 is made of 1 character: 害 (10 strokes). That is 10 strokes in total.
Is 害 an HSK word?
Yes. 害 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
Why does 厉害 (lìhai) sometimes mean something good?
厉害 describes anything that makes a strong impression. 他很厉害 (tā hěn lìhai) usually praises someone as impressive or skilled, while 疼得厉害 (téng de lìhai) means it hurts badly. Context tells you which.
How do I say I am shy or embarrassed using 害?
Use 害羞 (hàixiū), to be shy or bashful. For example, 她很害羞 (tā hěn hàixiū) means she is very shy.