悤
cōng

agitated

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approved by inralback19 · Feb 12, 2026, 11:50 PM · Reviewed by inralback19 on Feb 12, 2026, 11:50 PM

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Original meaning: insightful

Depicts a line (囱) piercing a heart (心) (i.e. having an insightful understanding), conveying the meaning "insightful", now written as 聰. The current meaning is a phonetic loan.

Components

心
心 Iconic component

In ancient China, it was thought that the heart was the center of thought and reasoning.

囱
囱 SoundIconic component

Depicts a line piercing. Represents having an insightful understanding in one's thoughts.


Character Evolution

Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Western Zhou ~800 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Western Zhou ~800 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Spring and Autumn ~500 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Regular Modern

說文解字

《說文》：“悤，多遽悤悤也。从心、囪，囪亦聲。”

Sources

Character origin
季旭昇《說文新證》p.762林志強《《文源》評注》p.36張世超《金文形義通解》p.2443-2444Ning Yu "Heart and Cognition in Ancient Chinese Philosophy"
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)