釉 (yòu) — glaze (ceramic coating)

Definition

Examples

  • 釉。
    Zhè jiàn cí qì shàng de yòu fēi cháng jūn yún.
    The glaze on this porcelain piece is very even.
  • 釉,。
    Lǎo shī fu zhèng zài pèi yòu, zhǔn bèi shāo zhì xīn yì pī táo qì.
    The master is mixing glaze, preparing to fire a new batch of pottery.
  • 釉。
    Zhè zhǒng qīng sè de yòu zài sòng dài hěn liú xíng.
    This blue glaze was very popular in the Song dynasty.

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
采采cǎicolor
Sound part声符shēngfú
由
由yóu釉yòu
Same sound today

The form 釉 combines 采, related to color, with 由, which gives a clue to its sound.

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