侧

側

cè, zhāi

亻 + 则

HSK 3.0Level 6

Definitions

cè (noun) side; lateral

cè (verb) to lean; to incline towards

zhāi (verb) to lean to one side

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 亻 represents the meaning and 则 represents the sound. Simplified form of 側.

Semantic: 亻 Phonetic: 则

About

侧, the simplified version of 側, is a phonosemantic compound: the left side is the human radical 亻, signifying a person or bodily stance, while the right side 則 (traditional) or 则 (simplified) gives the sound. Originally, the character meant a person leaning or tilting sideways, a departure from facing directly forward. This concrete image of a body leaning to the side later expanded to mean the side, edge, or flank of any physical object, place, or abstract entity. In modern Chinese, it is employed for lateral movement, side views, flanking positions in military contexts, and secondary or indirect facets of a topic.

Etymology Hide

Bronze Late Western Zhou (~800 BC)

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我坐在他的右侧。

Wǒ zuò zài tā de yòu cè.

I sit on his right side.

请从侧门出去。

Qǐng cóng cè mén chū qù.

Please go out from the side door.

房子的侧面有窗户。

Fángzi de cèmiàn yǒu chuānghu.

The side of the house has windows.

她侧身让我过去。

Tā cè shēn ràng wǒ guò qù.

She turned sideways to let me pass.

我们需要考虑问题的侧面。

Wǒmen xūyào kǎolǜ wèntí de cèmiàn.

We need to consider the aspects of the problem.

在道路的右侧，有一家商店。

Zài dàolù de yòu cè, yǒu yī jiā shāngdiàn.

On the right side of the road, there is a shop.

他从侧面了解了事情的真相。

Tā cóng cèmiàn liǎojiě le shìqíng de zhēnxiàng.

He understood the truth of the matter from a side perspective.

工程师正在检查机器的侧面结构。

Gōngchéngshī zhèngzài jiǎnchá jīqì de cèmiàn jiégòu.

The engineer is inspecting the side structure of the machine.

Related Characters

Component: 亻

Component: 则

侧