Characters of Unit 3

是 shì: to be
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Graphic components: 日 sun; 𤴓 variant of 正 straight, correct.
Etymology: 是 shì is composed of two parts: at the top, the component 日 rì, which means "sun" or "day", and at the bottom, the component 正 (zhèng), which means "straight" or "correct". In ancient scripts, 是 originally represented the idea of truth or correctness, which evolved to express the affirmation of a state or an existence.

他 tā: he, him
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Graphic components: 亻 human; 也 viper or vessel.
Etymology: The character 他 tā was originally a phonetic borrowing from a character for snake 它 tā. The 'man' component was later added 亻 to form the character 佗. 他 is a variant of this character. It is this variant that has been preserved.

她 tā: she. Pronounced like "he", but the character is different: the left component is the 'woman' one.
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Graphic components: 女 woman; 也 viper or vessel.
Etymology: Before the 20th century, the pronoun " tā " for "she" did not exist as a distinct form, and this character was created to mark a gender distinction in the modern written language by replacing the 'human' component 亻 with the 'woman' one 女 in the left part of the character "he" 他 tā.

的 de: determinative particle (see the grammar)
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Graphic components: 白 white; 勺 spoon.
Etymology: 的 is composed of 白 (white) on the left, and 勺 (spoon) on the right. Together they originally expressed bright clarity, which helped people make out and grasp the things around them. By extension, it came to mean the center of a target. It is still found with this meaning in certain words, where it is then pronounced dì.

叫 jiào: to be called
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Graphic components: 口 mouth; 丩 two joined cords.
Etymology: 叫 jiào is a character formed from the 'mouth' 口, which represents sounds or the act of speaking, and the phonetic part 丩 (jiū), which gives the indication of pronunciation. 丩 jiū originally represented two joined cords.

什 shén: has no meaning on its own. 什么 shénme: what?

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Graphic components: 亻 man/human; 十 ten.
Etymology: 什 shén or shí is a character made of a radical and a phonetic part. It is formed from the 'man' radical 亻 (a variant of 人, "man") on the left, and the phonetic part 十 (shí, "ten") on the right. Originally, 什 referred to a group of 10 soldiers.

么 me: has no meaning on its own. 什么 shénme: what?

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Graphic components: 厶 private.
Etymology: 么 me or ma is a simplified character used mainly in question words such as 什么 (" shénme ", "what" or "which"). It is the simplification of the traditional character 麼. This character is made of the phonetic element 麻 má hemp, and of 幺 yāo "a very fine thread". The character 麼 originally meant "fine/thin". Nowadays, the character 么 is mainly used in interrogative expressions and colloquial words.

谁 shéi: who?

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Graphic components: 讠 speech; 隹 short-tailed bird.
Etymology: 谁 shéi (or shuí) is the simplified form of 誰. It is made of the 'speech' radical 讠 (a simplification of 言, meaning "speech" or "language"), indicating a link with communication or questions, and of the phonetic part 隹 zhuī, which represents a short-tailed bird and here serves as the phonetic component.

老 lǎo: to be old, old

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Graphic components: 耂 headdress; 匕 spoon.
Etymology: 老 lǎo is a pictogram depicting an elderly person bent over a cane with long hair.

师 shī: (master), not used on its own. The word "master" is said 师父 shīfu

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Graphic components: 刂 knife (vertical variant of 刀); 一 one; 巾 cloth, scarf, turban.
Etymology: 师 shī is an ideogram. It is the simplification of 師 which is composed of two elements: on the left, the component 𠂤 which represents a small hill; on the right, 帀 zā which meant "to encircle". The original character referred to a group of soldiers patrolling around the camp. By extension, 师 became a term for a master or teacher, a figure of authority in a specific field.

同 tóng: similar

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Graphic components: 冂 inverted box; 一 one; 口 mouth.
Etymology: 同 tóng is an ideogram. It is composed of two elements: at the top, the component 凡 fán "all, together", and inside, the character 口 kǒu, which means "mouth" or "opening". Together they evoke the idea of several people united by one voice. By extension, 同 came to mean "together", "identical" or "similar".

学 xué: to learn
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Graphic components: ⺍ small; 冖 roof; 子 child.
Etymology: 学 xué is an ideogram. The traditional character 學 gives a clue to understanding its composition. It is formed of two hands 臼 surrounding counting sticks 爻, a roof 冖 mì, and the child 子 zǐ. Together, the character evokes children under a roof, suggesting the idea of a place dedicated to study and learning. The simplified version 学 keeps this symbolism while simplifying the roof and omitting some strokes.

请 qǐng: to invite, please
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Graphic components: 讠 speech; 青 qīng blue-green.
Etymology: 请 qǐng is a phono-semantic compound. It is formed from the component 讠 'speech', which gives the idea of inviting, and the phonetic component 青 qīng (blue-green).

问 wèn: to ask, question

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Graphic components: 门 door; 口 mouth.
Etymology: 问 wèn (simplified form of 問) is composed of 门 mén (door) and 口 kǒu (mouth). Originally, it represented the act of asking questions at the entrance of a house. By extension, it took on the meanings of "to question", "to ask".

名 míng: (given name)

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Graphic components: 夕 dusk; 口 mouth.
Etymology: 名 míng is composed of two parts: the 'mouth' component 口 at the bottom, associated with language or speaking, and the upper part 夕, which represented the moon or the night and now means dusk. In ancient China, a name was often given during ceremonies at dusk, hence the association with night. This character thus symbolizes the idea of naming someone in a formal or ritual context.

字 zì: written character
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Graphic components: 宀 roof; 子 child.
Etymology: 字 zì is composed of two elements: the roof 宀 at the top, representing a shelter or a house, and the phonetic component 子 zǐ, meaning "child". In ancient Chinese culture, teaching children to write was traditionally done at home. Thus, 字 evokes the idea of a written character, connected with teaching children under a roof.

明 míng: (light, brightness, name of the Ming dynasty, 1368–1644)

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Graphic components: 日 sun; 月 moon.
Etymology: 明 míng is an ideogram. It is composed of two elements: 日 rì meaning "sun" on the left, and 月 yuè meaning "moon" on the right. Combining the sun and the moon symbolizes the idea of brightness and illumination, since the sun shines during the day and the moon at night. 明 thus represents light, knowledge, and by extension the notion of understanding or insight.

月 yuè: the month / (moon)
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Component: 月 is a component meaning "moon".
Etymology: 月 yuè is a primitive pictogram representing a crescent moon. This character symbolizes both the moon and the concept of month, linked to the lunar cycle.