About
The character "制" originated from an early meaning associated with cutting or fashioning an object, a sense derived from its structural components which combine a form related to a tree or wood with a knife radical, suggesting the act of cutting material to shape it. This concrete notion of crafting or making evolved to encompass the more abstract ideas of establishing rules, formulating systems, and exercising control, as the act of shaping physical objects was metaphorically extended to shaping social order and administrative procedures. In its journey, the character came to primarily signify systems, institutions, and the act of governing, while a traditional variant, "製", which incorporates an extra element meaning clothing, became specialized for the concrete sense of manufacturing or producing goods, thus creating a functional distinction between the abstract and concrete applications of the core concept.
Etymology Hide
Example Sentences Hide
我制作了一个蛋糕。
学校有严格的制度。
法律限制汽车的速度。
他控制不住自己的情绪。
这家工厂制造电子产品。
政府制定了一项新政策。
医生给他开了抑制疼痛的药。
经济因素制约了公司的发展。