Definitions

xìn split, quarrel, dispute; blood sacrifice

Etymology

A sacrifice made on an altar 

About

is an older variant and the core structural component of , which means a flaw, grievance, quarrel, or historically the smearing of sacrificial blood. The character combines 'mortar' and 'altar', depicting a sacrifice made on an altar. This image of ritual anointing led to a metaphor of a physical crack or fissure in a vessel, an opening for dispute, vulnerability, or interpersonal rift. Rarely used alone in modern writing, now serves as the semantic heart embedded within the traditional form to express conflict or ceremonial smearing.