蛇 shé snake; serpent
Made up of [虫 chóng insect; worm radical 142, 它 tā it ]Made with 11 strokes.
Perhaps relates to snakes eating insects
Related characters
Also uses 虫 chóng component: 独 dú (alone) 虽 suī (although) ; 虾 xiā (shrimp)
Sounds same
舌 shé (tongue)Different tone
射 shè (to shoot) ; 舍 shè (residence) ; 涉 shè (to wade)Pronunciation
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Proverbs
打草惊蛇 dǎ cǎo jīng shé It is unwise to alert an enemy of your presence虎头蛇尾 hǔ tóu shé wěi Begins promisingly but ends badly
画蛇添足 huà shě tiān zú Ruin by over working something. Add superfluous detail. Too meticulous
强龙难压地头蛇 qiáng lóng nán yā dì tóu shé Knowledge of local area and people gives them a distinct advantage even against a strong enemy
人心不足蛇吞象 rén xīn bù zú shé tūn xiàng Greed is insatiable
杯弓蛇影 bēi gōng shé yǐng Suspicious and frightened; plagued by fearful imagination. The story is of a man who was terrified by the sight of what he thought was a snake swimming in the cup of tea he was drinking. The experience made him ill and only when it was demonstrated that it was just the reflection of a bow left hanging on the wall did he recover.