刀
부수: 刀
획수: 2획
刀 has the meanings ‘knife’ and ‘sword’.
刀 = 刀
X = semantic
• 刀 depicts a knife and is simply used to represent sharp, cutting objects.
As a component, 刀 appears as 刂 and is often associated with ‘cutting’.
Evolution:
刀 = ’knife’ ➔ ’blade’
Mnemonic
At first, it’s difficult to compare the shape of 刀 to a knife. However, when looking at the historical bronze inscriptions (金文), you can see the line “branching off” is used to represent the thickness of the blade in relation to the handle.
As for the component form 刂, imagine it as cut-marks from a violent swordsman (like Zorro).
Vocab
| 短刀 | 단도 | short sword; dagger; stiletto |
| 面刀 | 면도 | shave |
| 面刀器 | 면도기 | shaving razor |
| 日本刀 | 일본도 | katana |
| 竹刀 | 죽도 | bamboo (training) sword |
| 銀粧刀 | 은장도 | ornamental silver knife |
| 도규계 | 刀圭界 | the medical profession |
| 단도직입 | 單刀直入 | straightforwardness |
Other resources
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Bibliography
Affiliate links help support uK.
— Grant, B.K. (1982). A Guide To Korean Characters: Reading and Writing Hangul and Hanja, [s.v. 12]. Seoul: Hollym.
— Henshall, K.G. (1998). A Guide to Remembering Japanese Characters, [s.v. 181]. Singapore: Tuttle Publishing.
— Outlier Dictionary of Chinese Characters, [s.v. 刀].
— Seely, C., Henshall, K.G., & Fan, J. (2016). The Complete Guide to Japanese Kanji: Remembering and Understanding the 2,136 Standard Japanese Characters, [s.v. 198]. Singapore: Tuttle Publishing.