演
yǎn HSK3

perform

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approved by Peter Olson · Jun 30, 2021, 08:50 PM · Reviewed by Peter Olson on Jun 30, 2021, 08:50 PM

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Changed fields: hint, originalMeaning, isVerified, customSources

Original meaning: flow out

Phonosemantic compound. 氵 represents the meaning and 寅 represents the sound. Based on the original meaning "flow out". The meaning later shifted to "spread", "develop", and "perform".

Components

氵
氵 Meaning component
shui, shuǐ water

氵 is a component form of 水.

寅
寅 Sound component
yín 3rd earthly branch

Character Evolution

Seal form
Seal Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagartyenXN-q(r)anʔ flow out, extend

說文解字

《說文》:“演,長流也。一曰水名。从水,寅聲。”

Sources

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