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A phono-semantic compound, 郛 pairs the phonetic 孚 on the left with the semantic radical 阝 on the right, indicating a city, wall, or settlement, and originally designated the outer wall of a city or the suburban area immediately outside the inner fortifications. In historical urban contexts, the character distinguished the secondary defensive perimeter or residential outskirts from the fortified core. Its modern usage is mostly confined to classical and historical texts on urban geography, siege warfare, and the layout of early dynastic capitals.
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