臭

The Chinese character 臭 (chòu) for "stink" is composed of two parts: the radical ⾆ (biǎn), which means "animal", and the phonetic component 酋 (qiú), which is a simplified form of the character 酋长 (qiúzhǎng), meaning "chief". The combination of these two components suggests the idea of an animal that smells bad, hence the meaning "stink".The character 臭 has a long history in Chinese writing, dating back to the Shang dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BC). It was originally written as 酋, which was later simplified to 臭. The character has also been used in other languages, such as Japanese (臭い, kusai) and Korean (냄새, naemsae), with similar meanings.In modern Chinese, 臭 is commonly used to describe unpleasant smells, such as the smell of garbage or sewage. It can also be used figuratively to describe something that is morally repugnant or corrupt. For example, the phrase "臭名昭著" (chòumíng zhāozhù) means "notorious" or "infamous".The character 臭 is a versatile character that can be used in a variety of contexts. It is an important character for HSK learners to know, as it is commonly used in everyday speech and writing.