衡

héng

亍 + 彳 + 𩵋

Definitions

héng (verb) to weigh; to measure

héng (noun) weight; measurement

Etymology

Depicts a person (大) with a horn (角) on their head, indicating an unbalanced single horn as opposed to a balanced pair of horns. 行 represents the sound. The meaning later shifted to "to weigh" and "measure".

About

The character 衡 is a phono-semantic compound built around the radical 行 (composed of 彳 and 亍), which signifies movement or a pathway and encloses a complex central phonetic element. Its original meaning referred to the horizontal yoke placed across a draft animal's neck for pulling a cart or plow. Since a yoke must distribute weight evenly, the concept naturally extended to the weighing of objects, the evaluation of situations, and the establishment of equilibrium, balance, and proportionality.

Etymology Hide

Bronze Late Western Zhou (~800 BC)

Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

保持身体平衡很重要。

Bao3 chi2 shen1 ti3 ping2 heng2 hen3 zhong4 yao4.

Maintaining body balance is important.

他仔细衡量了利弊。

Ta1 zi3 xi4 heng2 liang2 le0 li4 bi4.

He carefully weighed the pros and cons.

均衡的饮食对健康有益。

Jun1 heng2 de0 yin3 shi2 dui4 jian4 kang1 you3 yi4.

A balanced diet is beneficial for health.

你必须权衡轻重缓急。

Ni3 bi4 xu1 quan2 heng2 qing1 zhong4 huan3 ji2.

You must weigh the priorities.

科学家用衡器测量质量。

Ke1 xue2 jia1 yong4 heng2 qi4 ce4 liang2 zhi4 liang4.

Scientists use weighing instruments to measure mass.

经济均衡发展是长期目标。

Jing1 ji4 jun1 heng2 fa1 zhan3 shi4 chang2 qi1 mu4 biao1.

Balanced economic development is a long-term goal.

在复杂情况下，权衡利弊需要智慧。

Zai4 fu4 za2 qing2 kuang4 xia4, quan2 heng2 li4 bi4 xu1 yao4 zhi4 hui4.

In complex situations, weighing pros and cons requires wisdom.

生态系统的平衡依赖于多种因素的相互作用。

Sheng1 tai4 xi4 tong3 de0 ping2 heng2 yi1 lai4 yu2 duo1 zhong3 yin1 su4 de0 xiang1 hu4 zuo4 yong4.

The balance of the ecosystem depends on the interaction of multiple factors.

Related Characters

Composed characters:

Component: 亍

Component: 彳

衡