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硎 is a phono-semantic compound combining the semantic radical 石 (shí, 'stone') on the left with the phonetic component 刑 (xíng) on the right. Although 刑 by itself means punishment or penal law, here it merely supplies the sound. The character denotes a whetstone, a grinding stone for sharpening blades like swords and knives. It often appears in the idiom 发硎新试 (fāxíng-xīnshì), which evokes a newly sharpened blade or, metaphorically, a young person venturing out to test their skills.
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