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The character 饴 (traditional: 飴) is a phono-semantic compound. Its left component is the food radical 饣, a simplified form of 食, which hints at the meaning related to edibles, while the right component 台 serves as the phonetic indicator, giving the pronunciation. The traditional form features the full 食 radical, and the phonetic 台 is the same in both. The original meaning of 饴 is maltose, a viscous, sweet syrup or sweetmeat obtained from grains. In classical literature, it is commonly used to describe things that are sweet or pleasing to the palate, and has extended figuratively to sweet words or indulgent care.
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