耶和华见证人
Yē​hé​huá Jiàn​zhèng​rén

Jehovah's Witnesses

耶 yé, yē, ye ye (sound)

Corruption of 邪, with the 牙 component replaced with 耳.

Components

牙
牙 Sound component
yá tooth

Corrupted to 耳.

Change in form
Due to historical stylistic changes, this component is less similar to 牙 than it was in ancient scripts.
⻏
⻏ Meaning component
yì city

Character Evolution

Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Component uses

Sound (1 of 4 verified)

椰揶倻爺

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld Chinese
Zhengzhanglaː
Unicodeia

Sources

Character origin
Wiktionary
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Zhengzhang Shangfang
Historical images
Academia Sinica

和 hé, huo, he harmony

Phonosemantic compound. 口 represents the meaning and 禾 represents the sound.

Components

口
口 Meaning component
kǒu, kou mouth
禾
禾 Sound component
hé grain stalk

Character Evolution

Bronze form
Bronze Late Warring States ~250 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-Sagarthwa[ɢ]ˤoj harmonious
hwaH[ɢ]ˤoj-s tune (instruments); respond in singing

說文解字

《說文》：“咊，相譍也。从口，禾聲。”

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)

华 huá magnificent Simplified

Simplified form of 華. 化 is used here to represent the sound. The bottom component is a remnant from the traditional character 華.

Components

化
化 Sound component
huà change
華
華 SimplifiedRemnant component
huá magnificent

Remnant from the bottom of the traditional character 華.

Component uses

Sound (0 of 5 verified)

哗桦烨骅铧

Meaning (0 of 2 verified)

晔烨

Sources

Character origin
李学勤《字源》p.554-555
Readings & variants
Unicode

见 jiàn, xiàn, jian see Simplified

Simplified form of 見. Pictograph of a person (卩) using their eye (目) to see (見).

Components

目
目 IconicSimplified component
mù eye

Depicts an eye.

卩
卩 Iconic component
jié person kneeling

Depicts a person.

Change in form
Due to historical stylistic changes, this component is less similar to 卩 than it was in ancient scripts.

Component uses

Meaning (5 of 17 verified)

现规觉观视览觅觑觐觎觊靓岘觇觋觏觌

Sound (3 of 8 verified)

现舰砚苋笕岘蚬枧

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode

证 zhèng proof Simplified

Phonosemantic compound. 讠 represents the meaning and 正 represents the sound. Simplified form of 證.

Components

讠
讠 Meaning component
yán speech

讠 is a component form of 言.

正
正 Sound component
zhèng, zheng, zhēng correct

Sources

Readings & variants
Unicode

人 rén, ren person

Pictograph of the side view of a standing person.

Character Evolution

Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Early Western Zhou ~1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Mid Western Zhou ~900 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Western Zhou ~800 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Early Spring and Autumn ~700 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Spring and Autumn ~500 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Warring States ~250 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Component uses

Iconic (65)

以年从此内先及克死万企众坐负竟介监临亮鬼兄闪寒盾夹卧欠吊兑囚蜀虐羌敖戍奂艮臨臥負閃監弔疒兌兒冘皃夌㐱夾夃奐臽卬翏丏𠩺𡵂𦰋飤幾秊𥁕厃

Meaning (4 of 5 verified)

队亮允佘仝

Sound (2 of 3 verified)

认氽䧹

Simplified (1)

队

Unknown (0 of 1 verified)

隳

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-Sagartnyinni[ŋ] (other) person

說文解字

《說文》：“人，天地之性最貴者也。此籀文，象臂脛之形。”

Sources

Character origin
季旭昇《說文新證》p.630
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)

華 huá magnificent Traditional

Original meaning: flower

Phonosemantic compound. 艹 represents the meaning and 𠌶 represents the sound. Based on the original meaning "flower", now written as 花. The meaning later shifted to "blossoming", "flourishing" and "magnificent".

Components

艹
艹 Meaning component
cao, cǎo grass

艹 is a component form of 艸.

𠌶
𠌶 SoundMeaning component
huā flower

Pictograph of a fully bloomed flower.

Change in form
Due to historical stylistic changes, this component is less similar to 𠌶 than it was in ancient scripts.

Character Evolution

Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Component uses

Sound (0 of 3 verified)

驊樺嘩

Simplified (1)

华

Remnant (1)

华

Meaning (0 of 1 verified)

曄

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-Sagartxwaeqʷʰˤra flower (n.)
hwaeN-qʷʰˤra flower (v.); flowery (adj.)
hwaeH[ɢ]ʷˤra-s [name of a mountain]

說文解字

榮也。从艸从𠌶。凡華之屬皆从華。

Sources

Character origin
李学勤《字源》p.554-555
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)

見 jiàn, xiàn, jian see Traditional

Pictograph of a person (卩) using their eye (目) to see (見).

Components

目
目 Iconic component
mù eye

Depicts an eye.

卩
卩 Iconic component
jié person kneeling

Depicts a person.

Change in form
Due to historical stylistic changes, this component is less similar to 卩 than it was in ancient scripts.

Character Evolution

Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Early Western Zhou ~1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Mid Western Zhou ~900 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Warring States ~250 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Component uses

Meaning (7 of 16 verified)

視覺觀規親覓覷覽覦靚覘覡覲峴覬現

Sound (2 of 5 verified)

靦莧峴硯現

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagartkenH[k]ˤen-s see (v.)
henHN-[k]ˤen-s appear
henHm-[k]ˤen-s cause to appear, introduce

說文解字

《說文》：“見，視也。从儿，从目。”

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)

證 proof Traditional

Original meaning: to admonish

Phonosemantic compound. 言 represents the meaning and 登 represents the sound.

Components

言
言 Meaning component
yán speech
登
登 Sound component
dēng rise

Character Evolution

Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Western Jin 266-316 AD
Regular Modern

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagarttsyingHtəŋ-s testify, prove

說文解字

《說文》：“證，告也。从言，登聲。”

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)