史 (shǐ) — (bound form) history; historical; (bound form) official historian (archaic); (proper noun) surname Shi
Definition
A bound morpheme meaning 'history / historical' — almost always combined with another character (e.g. 历史, 史料, 通史); the stand-alone 'surname Shi' sense is rare.
bound form
historyhistoricalofficial historian (archaic)(proper noun) surname Shi
Easily confused
- 吏lìlook-alikelow-level official (in imperial China); clerk
- 使shǐsound-aliketo cause, to make (someone do something)
- 屎shǐsound-alikefeces; excrement; stool
- 驶shǐsound-aliketo travel or move (of vehicles, ships, aircraft); to drive; to sail
- 始shǐsound-alikebeginning, start (bound form, used in compounds)
- 矢shǐsound-alikearrow (bound form; literary)
Examples
- 。Zhōng guó yǒu wǔ qiān nián de lì shǐ.China has five thousand years of history.
- 史。Tā shì yí wèi yán jiū míng shǐ de xué zhě.He is a scholar who studies Ming history.
- 。Zhè běn shǐ shū jì zǎi le hěn duō gǔ dài shì jiàn.This historical record documents many ancient events.
Origin
Pictograph六书liùshū
象形xiàngxíngA drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.
The old drawing showed someone holding a flag-like or writing tool, indicating the act of recording events; the exact inner shape is unclear.
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