About
苷 is a phono-semantic compound with the grass radical 艹 at the top, indicating a connection to plants, and the component 甘 at the bottom, meaning "sweet" and providing the pronunciation "gān". Historically, it referred to liquorice or other sweet-tasting medicinal herbs. In modern usage, it primarily serves as a scientific term for a glycoside, a compound formed when a sugar molecule's hydroxyl group is replaced.
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