Pictograph of a plow, which requires strength to operate.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | lik | k.rək | strength |
說文解字
《說文》：“力，筋也。象人筋之形。治功曰力，能圉大災。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 漢語多功能字庫季旭昇《說文新證》p.918-919
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)
Simplified
Original meaning: pasture, straw mat
Phonosemantic compound. 艹 represents the meaning and 存 represents the sound. Simplified form of 薦. Based on the original meaning "pasture, straw mat". The current meaning is a phonetic loan.
Components
Character Evolution
Component uses
Sound (0 of 1 verified)
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | dzenH | N-tsˤə[n]-s | grass, herb |
| dzenH | [N-ts]ˤə[n]-s | twice; a second time |
說文解字
《說文》：“荐，薦蓆也。从艸，存聲。”
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)
Traditional
Original meaning: pasture, straw mat
Depicts an animal (廌) eating grass (艹) in a pasture. Based on the original meaning "pasture, straw mat". The current meaning is a phonetic loan.
Components
Character Evolution
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | tsenH | Cə.tsˤə[r]-s | grass, fodder |
說文解字
《說文》：“薦，獸之所食艸。从廌，从艸。古者神人以廌遺黃帝，帝曰：‘何食？何處？’曰：‘食薦；夏處水澤，冬處松柏。’”
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)