guī​yuē

terms

guī rules Simplified

Original meaning: compass; a kind of drawing tool

Simplified form of . Depicts a kind of drawing tool for drawing circles with. The (see) component was later added to suggest watching something being drawn. Based on the original meaning "compass; a kind of drawing tool", now written as . The meaning has shifted over time and now means "rules".

Components

Iconic component
characterless component

Depicts a compass or a kind of drawing tool. Modern form looks like unrelated .

Meaning component
jiàn, xiàn, jian see

Component uses

Sound (0 of 1 verified)

Sources

Readings & variants
Unicode

yuē agreement Simplified

Original meaning: bind

Simplified form of . Phonosemantic compound. represents the meaning and represents the sound. Based on the original meaning "bind". The meaning later shifted to "agreement", "restrain", "keep under control", "appointment", and "approximately".

Components

Meaning component
silk

is a component form of .

Sound component
sháo, shuò, zhuó spoon
Change in sound

Component uses

Sound (1 of 2 verified)

Historical Pronunciations

Sources

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

guī rules Traditional

Original meaning: compass; a kind of drawing tool

Depicts a kind of drawing tool for drawing circles with. The (see) component was later added to suggest watching something being drawn. Based on the original meaning "compass; a kind of drawing tool", now written as . The meaning has shifted over time and now means "rules".

Components

Iconic component
characterless component

Depicts a compass or a kind of drawing tool. Modern form looks like unrelated .

Meaning component
jiàn, xiàn, jian see

Character Evolution

Bronze form
Bronze Late Shang ~1100 BC
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

Component uses

Sound (0 of 1 verified)

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-Sagartkjwiekʷe compass, circle

說文解字

《說文》:“規,有法度也。从夫,从見。”

Sources

Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica

yuē agreement Traditional

Original meaning: bind

Phonosemantic compound. represents the meaning and represents the sound. Based on the original meaning "bind". The meaning later shifted to "agreement", "restrain", "keep under control", "appointment", and "approximately".

Components

Meaning component
silk

is a component form of .

Sound component
sháo, shuò, zhuó spoon
Change in sound

Character Evolution

Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 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 Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
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)

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-Sagart'jiewH[q]ewk-s bond, agreement (n.)
'jak[q](r)ewk bind (v.), make an agreement

說文解字

《說文》:“約,纏束也。从糸,勺聲。”

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica