About
The character "萧", with its traditional form "蕭", is structured from the grass radical (艹) atop the phonetic component "肅", indicating its original association with vegetation. Its earliest meanings centered on a specific type of aromatic mugwort or wormwood plant, as documented in classical texts. Over centuries, this concrete botanical reference provided a foundation for semantic extension, whereby the character came to evoke the qualities of such plants in wild or uncultivated settings, thus developing its pervasive abstract senses of desolation, quiet solemnity, and melancholic stillness. This transition from denoting a tangible object to conveying an atmospheric or emotional state represents a typical pattern of lexical evolution in the language, where the character's form and initial meaning provided a logical pathway for its later, more figurative applications.
Etymology Hide
Example Sentences Hide
萧先生来了。
秋天很萧瑟。
市场显得很萧条。
萧红是中国著名的作家。
经济萧条影响了很多人。
萧瑟的秋风吹过田野。
萧索的冬景让人感到孤独。
尽管环境萧条，他依然坚持创业。