About
嶙 is a phono-semantic compound with the semantic radical 山 (mountain) on the left and the phonetic component 粦 (lín) on the right, indicating its pronunciation. It functions as an adjective to describe mountains or rocky terrain as steep, jagged, and rugged. While 粦 is associated with will-o'-the-wisp, it contributes only the sound here, not any meaning of light. The character is almost exclusively used in the compound 嶙峋, a literary term that vividly conveys the imposing, uneven, and harsh texture of sheer cliffs and stone formations.
Etymology Hide