Definitions
americium (chemistry) (Tw); (archaic) metal chain
Etymology
About
鋂 is a phono-semantic compound with the metal radical 金 on the left and the phonetic 每 (měi) on the right, pronounced méi. Historically, it referred to a large metal ring or collar for tethering hunting dogs, reflecting specialized ancient hunting vocabulary. In modern Chinese, the character was repurposed for the synthetic element americium: the phonetic 每 approximates the element's name, while the metal radical classifies it as a metallic element. This exemplifies the recycling of obsolete characters for scientific nomenclature.
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