About
The character 甑 is a phono-semantic compound, with the semantic radical 瓦 (wǎ, earthenware/pottery) on the right and the phonetic component 曾 (zēng) on the left. It refers to an ancient steamer, a cooking vessel with a perforated bottom placed over boiling water to steam grains like rice or millet. Although originally made of pottery, its meaning later extended to include bronze or iron versions, serving as an early predecessor to the modern bamboo steamer.
Etymology Hide
