稽 (jī) — surname Ji

Definition

Examples

  • 稽。
    Wǒ xìng jī.
    My surname is Ji.
  • 稽。
    jī Lǎo shī jiào wǒ men lì shǐ.
    Teacher Ji teaches us history.
  • 稽。
    Zhè wèi shì jī xiān sheng.
    This is Mr. Ji.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèperson's head
Sound part声符shēngfú
旨
旨zhǐ稽jī
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

稽 keeps 旨 for the sound; its original form used 頁, a person's head, for the meaning.

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