泥质页岩
ní​zhì​yè​yán

mudstone

泥 ní mud

Phonosemantic compound. 氵 represents the meaning and 尼 represents the sound.

Components

氵
氵 Meaning component
shui, shuǐ water

氵 is a component form of 水.

尼
尼 Sound component
ní, nǐ Buddhist nun

Character Evolution

Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagartnejC.nˤ[əj]mud
nejHnˤər(ʔ)-simpeded, obstructed (Lunyu)
Zhengzhangniːl
niːls
Unicodenei
nèi

說文解字

水。出北地郁郅北蠻中。从水尼聲。

Sources

Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-SagartZhengzhang Shangfang
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)

质 zhì nature, substance Simplified

Original meaning: pledge, pawn

Simplified form of 質. Phonosemantic compound. 斦 represents the sound and 贝 represents the meaning.

Components

斤
斤 Simplified component
jīn axe

Shorthand for the phonetic 斦 component in the traditional character 質.

贝
贝 Meaning component
bèi sea shell

In ancient China shells were used as currency.

Change in meaning
贝 hints at the original meaning of 质, "pledge, pawn", which is no longer the most common meaning of 质 in modern Mandarin.

Component uses

Sound (1 of 2 verified)

踬𬃊

Sources

Character origin
季旭昇《說文新證》p. 522
Readings & variants
Unicode

页 yè page Simplified

Simplified form of 頁. Pictograph of a head (首) on top of a person (卩). Means "head" when pronounced xié. Has unrelated meaning "leaf" when pronounced yè, due to this character being adopted as a variant form of 葉.

Components

首
首 Iconic component
shǒu head
Change in form
Due to historical stylistic changes, this component is less similar to 首 than it was in ancient scripts.
卩
卩 Iconic component
jié person kneeling

Component uses

Meaning (14 of 35 verified)

题领项预顿顾额顺顶颜颇颤顽颈颠硕颁颂颊颅颓颐颌颉颚颔颧颏颞颀颛顸颡颃颥

Iconic (5)

须烦频顷濒

Unknown (0 of 2 verified)

颖颍

Sound (0 of 1 verified)

颗

Sources

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

岩 yán cliff

The rocks 石 that make up a mountain 山

Components

山
山 Meaning component
shān mountain
石
石 Meaning component
shí stone

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-Sagartngæm[ŋ]ˤr[a]m (< uvular?)rocky, lofty
Zhengzhangŋraːm
Unicodengam

Sources

Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-SagartZhengzhang Shangfang

質 zhì nature, substance Traditional

Original meaning: pledge, pawn

Phonosemantic compound. 斦 represents the sound and 貝 represents the meaning.

Components

斦
斦 Sound component
zhì, yín chopping block
貝
貝 Meaning component
bèi sea shell

In ancient China shells were used as currency.

Change in meaning
貝 hints at the original meaning of 質, "pledge, pawn", which is no longer the most common meaning of 質 in modern Mandarin.

Character Evolution

Bronze form
Bronze Late Western Zhou ~800 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Warring States ~250 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Warring States ~250 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Component uses

Sound (1 of 2 verified)

櫍躓

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagarttrijH[t]<r>ip-s hostage; gift
tsyitt-lit substance, solid part

說文解字

《說文》：“質，以物相贅，从貝，从斦。闕。”

Sources

Character origin
季旭昇《說文新證》p. 522
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)

頁 yè (head), page Traditional

Original meaning: head

Pictograph of a head (首) on top of a person (卩). Means "head" when pronounced xié. Has unrelated meaning "leaf" when pronounced yè, due to this character being adopted as a variant form of 葉.

Components

首
首 Iconic component
shǒu head
Change in form
Due to historical stylistic changes, this component is less similar to 首 than it was in ancient scripts.
卩
卩 Iconic component
jié person kneeling

Character Evolution

Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Mid Western Zhou ~900 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Component uses

Meaning (16 of 38 verified)

題頸顯預顧項顱順顏頗領顗頂額顫顬頌頰顎頹願顳顓頷頒頤顛碩頓頜顴頦頏顚顙龥頑頡

Iconic (11)

头夏履寡頭須頻頃煩瀕頪

Simplified (1)

头

Sound (0 of 1 verified)

顆

Unknown (0 of 1 verified)

穎

Historical Pronunciations

Old Chinese
Zhengzhangleb
ɡleːd

說文解字

《說文》：“頁，頭也。从，从儿。古文如此。者首字也。”

Sources

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