义和团运动 Origin — Dong Chinese Dictionary

yì justice Simplified

Adapted from the cursive form of the traditional character 義. Phonosemantic compound. 羊 represents the meaning and 我 represents the sound. In ancient China sheep (羊) were associated with goodness and beauty, which is why 羊 is a component in characters like 美 (beautiful), 善 (benevolent), and 義 (justice).

Components

羊 Meaning Simplified component

yáng sheep

我 Sound Simplified component

wǒ I; me

Change in sound

义 and 我 don't sound similar in modern Mandarin due to historical phonetic changes. They were more similar in Old Chinese.
义 *ŋ(r)aj-s
我 *ŋˤajʔ

Component uses

Sound (1 of 4 verified)

议仪蚁舣

Historical Pronunciations

Sources

Readings & variants: Unicode

hé, huo, he harmony

Phonosemantic compound. 口 represents the meaning and 禾 represents the sound.

Components

口 Meaning component

kǒu, kou mouth

禾 Sound component

hé grain stalk

Character Evolution

Bronze form — Bronze Late Warring States ~250 BC

Seal form — Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC

Regular Modern

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Historical Pronunciations

	Middle Chinese	Old Chinese	Gloss
Baxter-Sagart	hwa	[ɢ]ˤoj	harmonious
	hwaH	[ɢ]ˤoj-s	tune (instruments); respond in singing

說文解字

《說文》：“咊，相譍也。从口，禾聲。”

Sources

Character origin: 漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants: Unicode
Historical pronunciations: Baxter-Sagart
Historical images: Academia Sinica
Etymology: Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)

tuán ball Simplified

Simplified form of 團. Phonosemantic compound. 囗 represents the meaning and 專 represents the sound.

Components

囗 Meaning component

wéi, guó surround

才 Simplified component

cái, cai talent

Shorthand for the 專 component in the traditional character 團.

Sources

Character origin: 漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants: Unicode

yùn to move Simplified

Phonosemantic compound. 辶 represents the meaning and 云 represents the sound. Simplified form of 運.

Components

辶 Meaning component

chuò walk

辶 is a component form of 辵.

云 Sound component

yún clouds

Sources

Readings & variants: Unicode

dòng move Simplified

Simplified form of 動. Phonosemantic compound. 力 represents the meaning. The sound component 重 was simplified to 云.

Components

力 Meaning component

lì, li power

云 Simplified component

yún clouds

Shorthand based on the cursive form of the 重 component in the traditional character 動.

Component uses

Sound (0 of 1 verified)

恸

Meaning (0 of 1 verified)

恸

Sources

Readings & variants: Unicode

yì right conduct Traditional

Phonosemantic compound. 羊 represents the meaning and 我 represents the sound. In ancient China sheep (羊) were associated with goodness and beauty, which is why 羊 is a component in characters like 美 (beautiful), 善 (benevolent), and 義 (justice).