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miǎo
insignificant
泪 + 少shǎo
tears + few
Character Notes

Imagine saying, "This seems to be an insignificant problem if the tears are few."

Character Comparison
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zhā
bellow
口 + 乇
mouth + fur ball
Character Notes

Imagine a bellow coming from a fur ball's mouth.

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chin
臣modified + 页
loft bed + head
Character Notes

The common word for chin is 下巴, but this literary word is part of the name of the Summer Palace in Beijing 颐和园. Characters with the 页head component are often parts of the head: forehead 额, cheek 颊, neck 领, face 颜, etc. If you turn the left-hand component of this character 90 degrees counterclockwise, it could look like a chin. Or maybe you are looking up at someone on a loft bed and just see their chin hanging over.

Character Comparison
颊 jiá cheek
Series

prostitute
女 + 支zhī
woman + branch
Character Notes

A prostitute is the woman on a branch of the family tree that no one talks about.

Character Comparison

lán
impede
扌 + 兰lán
hand + orchid
Character Notes

You put out your hand to impede someone from touching the royal orchid.

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save up
艹 + 畜chù
flowers + livestock
Character Notes

Mahana grew flowers while Johnny Lingo saved up livestock.

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chù
livestock
玄 + 田
mysterious + field
Character Notes

There is a mysterious practice of going into a field at night and tipping over livestock.

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guàn
pour into
氵 + 雚guàn
water + stork
Character Notes

You pour water into the stork jar 罐.

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duó
take by force
大dà + 寸
large (dog) + thumb
Character Notes

You use your thumb to take by force the object out of your large dog's mouth.

In a thumb war, the larger thumb will take the other by force.

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guī
come back
刂 + 彐
sword + broom
Character Notes

Someone who comes back from war gives up his sword for a broom.

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currency
丿 + 巾
slash + towel
Character Notes

Picture a beach towel with your favorite currency symbol on it.

Picture the slash showing the ratio in the exchange rate for currency; money is laundered with the towels.

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zhì
hurl
扌 + 郑zhèng
hand + Zheng
Character Notes

You use your hand to hurl Mr. Zheng out after he loses at dice.

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shǎi/tóu
dice
骨 + 殳
skeleton + boomerang
Character Notes

Picture a skeleton playing dice in the outback.

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smash
石 + 匚 + 巾
stone + box + towel
Character Notes

You use a stone to smash a box covered with a towel, so the shards inside don’t fly up.

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so what?
口 + 乍zhà
mouth + saw
Character Notes

"So I'm sawing, so what?"

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hào
consume
耒 + 毛máo
Christmas tree + fur
Character Notes

Some make Christmas the ultimate consumer holiday: waste trees and buy luxury goods like fur coats.

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time and again
尸 + 娄lóu
corpse/flag + bride
Character Notes

A corpse bride wants to get married time and again.

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jiǔ
chives
非 + 一
jail + floor
Character Notes

Picture chives growing on the floor of a jail cell.

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lián
drapes
穴 + 巾
hole + towel
Character Notes

When you first move in, a towel can act as drapes to cover the hole of the window.

Character Comparison
Series
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