Pictograph of a crack on a bone. In ancient China such cracks were used for fortune-telling.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | puwk | pˤok | divine (v.) |
說文解字
《說文》：“卜，灼剥龜也。象灸龜之形。一曰象龜兆之從橫也。，古文卜。”
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)
Simplified
Simplified form of 辭. Alludes to a governance (𤔔) dispute related to criminal law (辛). Based on the original meaning "litigation". The meaning later shifted to "words".
Components
Character Evolution
Sources
- Character origin
- 李学勤《字源》p.1277
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
Traditional
Original meaning: litigation
Alludes to a governance (𤔔) dispute related to criminal law (辛). Based on the original meaning "litigation". The meaning later shifted to "words".
Components
Character Evolution
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | zi | sə.lə | words |
說文解字
《說文》：“辭，訟也。从，猶理辜也。，理也。，籀文辭从司。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 李学勤《字源》p.1277
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)