approvedby cochleoid · Nov 19, 2025, 07:28 AM· Reviewed by cochleoid on Nov 19, 2025, 07:28 AM
Nearly cut and paste from Wiktionary for now (is that okay?). Until I found that confirmation, I was very confused that this also had a meaning close to "to sell" just like the unrelated 賣. I thought maybe it was a mistake.
Changed fields: hint, isVerified, customSources
Phonosemantic compound. 𡍬 represents the sound and 貝 represents the meaning. Evolved into 𧶠 with 𡍬 being further reduced to 士 and 四, often confused with the graphically (and semantically) similar but etymologically unrelated 賣.
When 𧸇 was used as a component in other characters, 𡍬 was reduced resulting in 𧶠 and then 賣. This is different than 賣 as a standalone character, which although graphically and semantically similar, has different origins.
Change in sound
𧸇 and 𡍬 don't sound similar in modern Mandarin due to historical phonetic changes. They were more similar
in older Chinese.
