Definitions

qióng round; to stare

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. represents the meaning and represents the sound.

About

is a phonosemantic compound: the ('eye') component on top gives it a meaning related to looking or staring, while the lower component provides the pronunciation and originally depicted a long flowing garment. The character means to look at something with distress, anxiety, or helplessness, often suggesting solitude or a lack of support. It frequently functions as a phonetic anchor in more complex characters, such as those for rings or cyclical movement, with various semantic radicals added to it.

Etymology Hide

Bronze etymology image
Bronze Early Western Zhou (~1000 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Early Western Zhou (~1000 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Mid Western Zhou (~900 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Late Western Zhou (~800 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern