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六書

简六书 · 繁六書

Mandarin · pinyin liù shū

Six Methods of forming Chinese characters, according to Han dictionary Shuowen 說文 - namely, two primary methods: 象形 (pictogram), 指事 (ideogram), two compound methods: 會意 (combined ideogram), 形聲 (ideogram plus phonetic), and two transfer methods: 假借 (loan), 轉注 (transfer)

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Characters in this entry

六: liù · number six
書: Look up this written character
书: shū · book, letter, document; writings

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

4–1 · liu4 shu1

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

六書 · find source passages ↗ · 六书 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

luk6 syu1

Cantonese word readings for 六書. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

noun

The six types of Han characters

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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