Sept. 9, 2025
The methods by which Chinese characters were created (5 & 6)
As I mentioned before, the last two methods are used to expand the meanings of characters.
One is called loan characters 假借. For example, the character 自 originally meant "nose." Because people often pointed to their noses when referring to themselves, this character gradually came to mean "self."
The other is called mutually explanatory characters 转注. This concept is too difficult to explain in English. Unless you are determined to become a professor of Chinese philology, there's no need to dive into the details. It's perfectly fine to simply know the term.
正如我之前提到的，最后两种方法是用来扩展汉字含义的。
第一种叫做“假借”。例如，“自”这个字原本的意思是“鼻子”。因为人们在指代自己时常常会指向自己的鼻子，所以这个字逐渐演变成了“自己”的意思。
第二种叫做“转注”。这个概念即使在中文里也很难解释清楚。除非你决心要成为一名汉语言学教授，否则没有必要探究细节。知道这个名称就好了。
The methods by which Chinese characters were created (5 & 6)
As I mentioned before, the last two methods are used to expand the meanings of characters.
One is calledmethod is the use of loan characters 假借.
If 假借 is a translation of "loan characters", then it would make the most sense to put it in brackets, ie. "One method is the use of loan characters (假借)."
For example, the character 自 originally meant "nose."
Because people often pointed to their noses when referring to themselves, this character gradually came to mean "self."
The other is called mutually explanatory characters 转注.
Same feedback about using brackets for direct translation as above.
This concept is too difficult to explain in English.
Unless you are determined to become a professor of Chinese philology, there's no need to dive into the details.
It's perfectly fine to simply know the term.
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Feb. 6, 2026
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The methods by which Chinese characters were created (5 & 6) This sentence has been marked as perfect! |
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As I mentioned before, the last two methods are used to expand the meanings of characters. This sentence has been marked as perfect! |
|
One is called loan characters 假借. One If 假借 is a translation of "loan characters", then it would make the most sense to put it in brackets, ie. "One method is the use of loan characters (假借)." |
|
For example, the character 自 originally meant "nose." This sentence has been marked as perfect! |
|
Because people often pointed to their noses when referring to themselves, this character gradually came to mean "self." This sentence has been marked as perfect! |
|
The other is called mutually explanatory characters 转注. The other is called mutually explanatory characters 转注. Same feedback about using brackets for direct translation as above. |
|
This concept is too difficult to explain in English. This sentence has been marked as perfect! |
|
Unless you are determined to become a professor of Chinese philology, there's no need to dive into the details. This sentence has been marked as perfect! |
|
It's perfectly fine to simply know the term. This sentence has been marked as perfect! |
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