歹 dǎi bare bones
corpse; evil
How it came to be
A bone stripped and cracked, what is left of a body after everything else has gone. It is the remains themselves, not any judgment about them.
How it is used
- Bad/evil, the opposite of 好 - 歹徒 (dǎitú) a villain/thug, 为非作歹 (wéifēi-zuòdǎi) to do evil, 好人 (hǎorén) a good person.
- 好歹 (hǎodǎi) is a very useful compound: it means 'no matter what / anyhow' (你好歹吃点 eat at least something) or 'mishap' (万一有个好歹 if anything should happen to him).