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The character 雚 is a phono-semantic compound, with the semantic element 雈 (艹 "grass" atop 隹 "short-tailed bird") suggesting a marsh-dwelling bird and the phonetic element 吅 ("two mouths", denoting noise) possibly alluding to its call. It originally referred to a water bird like a stork or heron. Over time, 雚 became heavily used as a phonetic component in characters such as 觀 and 歡, and its standalone noun usage grew archaic.
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