huī

虺

Character · Noun · Adjective

a venomous snake (classical); weary

Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma

Meanings

2 senses · 3 examples
1.

noun

a venomous snake mentioned in ancient texts

archaic

This term is archaic and appears almost exclusively in classical Chinese literature or historical references.

 《
Chǔ楚
Cí辞
 》
zhōng中
tí提
dào到
le了
‘‘
huī虺
shé蛇
 ’
zhè这
zhǒng种
dú毒
wù物
 。

‘The Songs of Chu’ mentions the venomous creature ‘huī snake’.

Gǔ古
dài代
chuán传
shuō说
 ，
rén人
bèi被
huī虺
yǎo咬
shāng伤
huì会
zhòng中
dú毒
ér而
sǐ死
 。

Ancient legends say that a person bitten by a huī would die from poison.

2.

adjective

weary; exhausted; fatigued

archaic

This archaic meaning is rarely used in modern Chinese but may be seen in classical poetry or idioms derived from classics.

Shī诗
yún云
 ：
‘‘
wǒ我
mǎ马
huī虺
tuí隤
 ’
 。

The poem says: ‘My horse is weary and worn.’