Simplified
Original meaning: paper mulberry
Pictograph of a tree with paper mulberry leaves, now written as 楮. The distinguishing mark 口 was added later. The current meaning is a phonetic loan.
Components
口 Distinguishing component
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | tsyaeX | tAʔ | (nominalizing particle) |
說文解字
《說文》:“者,別事詞也。从白,聲。,古文旅字。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 林志強《《文源》評注》p.524-525李学勤《字源》p.290
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)
Traditional
Original meaning: to have an inclined head
Depicts a person (匕) with their head (頁) tilted or askew. Based on the original meaning "to have an inclined head", now written as 傾. The current meaning is a phonetic loan.
Components
Character Evolution
Component uses
Sound (1)
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | khjwiengX | [k]ʷʰeŋʔ | interval, short while |
說文解字
《說文》:“頃,頭不正也。从匕,从頁。”
Sources
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)