无家可归 (wú jiā kě guī) — homeless

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 無; 无 is its simplified writing.

For the simplified 无, the story is about 無. 無 drew a person dancing with ox tails held in both hands to pray for rain, then was borrowed for 'have no', so the picture does not explain that meaning.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

The early drawing of 家 showed a roof 宀 over a male-pig sign 𢑓 that gave the pronunciation; the lower part later changed shape.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

可 pairs 口 (mouth) with 丂 as a sound part; it is tied to air from the mouth, perhaps singing.

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 歸; 归 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 歸 combines 𠂤 (troops) and 帚 (broom; sweep) to show sweeping away an enemy and returning; the simplified 归 is a later abbreviation.