approvedby cochleoid · Jun 2, 2022, 05:27 AM· Reviewed by cochleoid on Jun 2, 2022, 05:27 AM
I think 刂 here was used for the meaning "cut" rather than part of an iconic depiction involving the form of a knife. 刂 is a meaning component in the other phonosemantic characters like 刻.
Changed fields: components
Original meaning: cut
Phonosemantic compound. 歬 represents the sound, and 刂 represents the meaning. Based on the original meaning "cut", now written as 剪. The current meaning "in front" is a phonetic loan.
刂 hints at the original meaning of 前, "cut",
which is no longer the most common meaning of 前 in modern Mandarin.
Character Evolution
BronzeMid Western Zhou~900 BCBronzeLate Western Zhou~800 BCSealWarring States (Chu)475-221 BCSealWarring States (Chu)475-221 BCSealWarring States (Chu)475-221 BCSealWarring States (Chu)475-221 BCSealWarring States (Chu)475-221 BCSealWestern Han202 BC-9 ADSealShuowen~100 ADClericalQin221-206 BCRegularModern
