4 ms·
exactly, so not sure whether the original assertion (i.e., most characters lack semantic meaning) is correct, but it's an interesting thought to consider. some
by panabee 10y ago
exactly, so not sure whether the original assertion (i.e., most characters lack semantic meaning) is correct, but it's an interesting thought to consider.
someone could prove/disprove this by analyzing the 3000 most common chars and indicating what percentage contain a semantic component (even if obfuscated).
do you know if wikipedia or the parent is correct about 正 as the radical for foot?
- nonabelion 10y agoWikipedia is correct. Radicals do carry a lot of semantic meanings. I think the most apparent examples are the names for chemical elements. For example, the radical 气 means gas. Hellium in Chinese is 氦，hydrogen is 氢. So look at the character you immediately know the natural state of the element. Moreover, even if you don't know a character, if you see it has the radical, you can guess what that is related.