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In traditional Chinese medicine, the character 芤 (kōu) is a phono-semantic compound: the grass radical 艹 (cǎo) on top signals a plant-related meaning, and the phonetic 孔 (kǒng) below indicates the pronunciation. Its original sense is the hollow stalk of a scallion or green onion, a cylindrical stem with an empty center. This botanical image was borrowed by ancient physicians to name the "scallion-stalk pulse" (芤脉), a pulse that feels large and soft but hollow at its core.
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