Halloween

These are the characters in this series. You can review them and quiz yourself at the bottom. To see them put together in an illustrated story, go to Lessons: Extension.

歹

dǎi

malicious, *carcass

alternative breakdown: 一+夕 ceiling + evening

Picture a haunted house: a carcass hanging from the ceiling in the evening.

灵

líng

spirit
彐 + 火
broom + fire

A spirit dancing around the fire with a broom.

巫

wū

witch
工 + 人 + 人
work/I-beam + person + person

This looks like a witch costume with two voodoo dolls hanging on the inside of her cape.

‍

A witch “works” on people.

Imagine a witch who cursed 2 people to forever carry I-beams.

臼

jiù

*rib cage

derivative: 叟 *skeleton

装

zhuāng

attire
壮zhuàng + 衣
robust + clothing

A robust teenage mutant ninja turtle puts on formal attire.

臽

xiàn

trap
⺈ + 臼
mask + rib cage

This is a Halloween trap to scare trick-or-treaters.

邪

xié

wicked
牙yá + 阝
tooth + city walls

The wicked tooth that haunts the city walls. (Halloween)

Dreaming about a wicked dentist’s ghost, who lurks by the city walls at night, waiting for victims from whom he can extract a tooth. (Dangerous Dentist)

壮

zhuàng

robust
丬qiáng + 士
turtle + soldier

Picture a robust teenage mutant ninja turtle.

With his turtle-like armor, this soldier looks quite robust.

曾

céng

formerly, *gremlin
丷 + ee + 曰
horns + evil eyes + sayeth

A gremlin head with a big wide grinning mouth.

烈

liè

intense
列liè + 灬
line up + cooking fire

Intense scene: zombies lined up with swords with flames under their feet.

色

sè

color [n.]
⺈ + 巴
mask + boa

This is “Rainboa”—a colorful masked snake.

can also be pronounced "shǎi" when it means a die (that you roll for games)

煞

shà

goblin
刍 + 攵 + 灬
flying witch + taskmaster + cooking fire

This goblin is cooked up by a flying witch who orders him to disturb the trick-or-treaters.

屰

nì

*devil's pitchfork
丷 + 屮
horns + pitchfork

A devil's pitchfork is often depicted with horns.

搜

sōu

search [v.]
扌 + 叟sǒu
hand + skeleton/old man

A hand is searching around in the dark and finds the skeleton of an old man.

列

liè

line up
歹 + 刂
carcass + sword

Zombies lining up with swords.

邹

zōu

Zou
刍 + X阝
flying witch + city walls

The flying witch Zou circles the city walls.

久

jiǔ

long time, *mummy
勹 + 人
bound up + person

This person has been bound up for a long time.

鬼

guǐ

ghost
丶 + 田 + 儿 + 厶
drop + field + human legs + monument

This ghost costume has a top knot on the sheet with human legs showing out the bottom. His leg is chained to a monument.

趋

qū

hasten
走 + 刍chú
walk + flying witch

A witch is walking along and a flying witch hastens her to her destination.

魔

mó

demon
麻má + 鬼
hemp + ghost

The ghost removes his sheet to smoke weed and reveals a demon face.

增

zēng

increase [v.]
土 + 曾céng
soil + gremlin

Soil, instead of water, causes these gremlins to increase.

皱

zhòu

wrinkles
刍 + 皮
flying witch + covering

This old flying witch is covered with wrinkles.

龟

guī

tortoise
⺈ + 电
mask + electricity

This is a tortoise costume that lights up.

焰

yàn

flame
火 + 臽xiàn
fire + trap

Don't touch the flame. Fire is pretty but it's a trap.

魄

pò

vigor
白 + 鬼
white + ghost

The white ghost in Pac-Man is the one with the most vigor.

逆

nì

go against
屰nì + 辶
devil's pitchfork + road

The devil with his pitchfork stands in the middle of the road. Do you dare go against him? Or are you already a rebel with a devil-may-care attitude that has gone against norms?

Go Against the Devil’s Pitchfork: This preacher feels that to go against the right road is to follow the devil's pitchfork. (1930's On the Road)

欢

huān

merry
又 + 欠
right hand + lack

This is Merry the pirate who lacks a right hand.

高

gāo

tall
亠 + 口 + 冂 + 口
top hat + mouth + hood + mouth

This is a tall man costume with someone on someone else’s shoulders. The guy on top wears a top hat to make him even taller. The guy on the bottom wears a hood.

兔

tù

rabbit
⺈ + 口 + 儿 + 丶
mask + “chest” + human legs + drop

A human dressed as an Easter rabbit with a mask and drop of a tail.

A kind of bunny with a large chest and human legs.

冏

jiong

*dementor
冂 + 丶丶 + 口
hood + 2 drops + mouth

This is a hooded dementor with sunken eyes and mouth.

叟

sǒu

old man, *skeleton
臼+丨+又
rib cage + stick + right hand

Picture a rib cage, spine and pelvic bones.

Sometimes an old man gets so skeletal, you can see his rib cage.

刍

chú

*flying witch
⺈ + 彐
mask + broom

This masked witch flies on a magic broom.

商

shāng

salesman
亠 + 丷 + 冏
top hat + horns + dementor

This is an evil salesman that wears a top hat to cover his horns and disguise his soul-sucking dementor-ness.

争

zhēng

contend
⺈ + 肀
mask + rake

This is a contentious hockey player with a mask and a rake.

冒

mào

risk [v.]
冂 + 二 + 目mù
hood + two + eye

This is a burglar (taking a risk) with just two slits in her hood for her eyes.

急

jí

anxious
刍 + 心
flying witch + heart

A witch flies by and you immediately feel anxious.

死

sǐ

death
歹 + 匕
carcass + spoon/person sitting

A picture of death: someone sitting slumped next to a dead carcass.

Halloween

Quiz

Show Answers