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kǎn
outspoken
亻 + 口 + 川
persona + mouth + stream
Character Notes

Picture your outspoken persona's mouth with a stream of words coming out of it.

Character Comparison
Series

cuò
arrange
扌 + 昔
hand + times past
Character Notes

Alternatively: 扌+ 龷 + 日 hand + flower arrangement + sun; You use your hand to arrange the dried (in the sun) flowers.

Character Comparison
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zhǐ
blessedness
礻 + 止zhǐ
Eastern altar + stop/footprint
Character Notes

Dear Ancestors, I would like to stop right her in this state of blessedness and keep my feet here forever.

Character Comparison

miǎn
Myanmar
纟 + 面miàn
thread + face-to-face
Character Notes

There is a unique tradition of thread and fabric made from lotus fibers from Inle Lake in Myanmar. You have to see it face-to-face to appreciate the process.

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Series

magnetism
石 + 兹zī
stone + Siamese twins
Character Notes

Can you think of a legend about the origin of Siamese twins about a magnetized stone inside each?

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jiàn
probe
D + 金jīn
bamboo sword + gold
Character Notes

Creative child's play: using a bamboo sword to probe for gold.

Character Comparison
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vivid
木 + 羽yǔ
tree + feathers
Character Notes

Picture a tree with colorful feathers instead of leaves--a vivid image.

Character Comparison
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depressed
̦有yǒu + 阝
possess + city walls
Character Notes

You possess personal city walls when you are depressed.

Character Comparison
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lěi
baseball base
3厶 + 土
3 monuments + soil
Character Notes

Imagine the Washington D.C. mall as a huge baseball field for giants with the Lincoln Memorial as home plate, Jefferson Memorial as first base, Washington Monument as second base and the White House as third base. There would be a lot of soil to cover as you ran the bases.

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nài
can't help but
大 + 示
large dog + altar
Character Notes

Picture a situation where you or someone else can't help but put their large dog on the altar to sacrifice for a greater cause. (Maybe their child is allergic, and they have to give the dog away?)

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small box
合hé + 皿
fit + dish
Character Notes

Picture a lid fitted on a dish, making it a small box.

Character Comparison
Series

qióng
poor
穴 + 力
hole + muscle
Character Notes

After a hole in his muscle prevented him from working, he soon became poor.

Character Comparison
Series

náng
sack [n.]
亠 + 中 + 冖 + 襄xiāng
top hat + middle + crown + Jiminy Cricket
Character Notes

Look carefully at this character, as several components separate or blend. Picture Jiminy Cricket in the middle of a sack, wearing a crown rather than his top hat (which is on top of the sack).

Character Comparison
Series

IV
X + I + 聿
staples + Great Wall + writing brush
Character Notes

This character can be used as a formal word for the number 4. Picture artifacts like staples and a writing brush dating from the year IV being found in the Great Wall.

Character Comparison
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bīn
water's edge
氵 + 宾bīn
water + visitor
Character Notes

A visitor stands on the water's edge.

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huō
breach
害hài + 谷
harm + valley
Character Notes

A shake has split open or breached the valley causing harm.

Character Comparison
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gǎng
hillock
山 + 冈gāng
mountain + ridge
Character Notes

Under the mountain ridge is a hillock.

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wàn
wrist
月 + 宛wǎn
body part + winding
Character Notes

The body part that can make the most winding motion is your wrist.

Character Comparison
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lèi
rib
月 + 力lì
body part + muscle
Character Notes

There are muscles between your ribs called intercostal muscles.

Character Comparison
Series
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