Origin unclear. Possibly a pictograph of a side view of a person with a mark on their leg indicating the length of one foot.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | tsyhek | tʰAk | foot (measure) |
說文解字
《說文》：“尺，十寸也。人手卻十分動脈為寸口。十寸為尺。尺，所以指尺榘事也。从尸，从乙，乙所識也。周制寸、尺、咫、尋、常、仞諸度量，皆以人之體為法。”
Sources
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)
Original meaning: pulse point on wrist
Pictograph of a hand with a line marking a spot on the wrist. In traditional Chinese medicine this spot on the wrist where the pulse can be taken is called the 寸口.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | tshwonH | [tsʰ]ˤu[n]-s | thumb; inch |
說文解字
《說文》：“寸，十分也。人手卻一寸動，謂之寸口。从又，从一。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 季旭昇《說文新證》p.233-234
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)