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指事字

Mandarin · pinyin zhǐ shì zì

ideogram (one of the Six Methods 六書 of forming Chinese characters)
Chinese character indicating an idea, such as up and down
also known as self-explanatory character

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Characters in this entry

指: zhǐ · finger, toe; point, indicate
事: shì · affair, matter, business; to serve; accident, incident
字: zì · letter, character, word

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

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Mandarin tones

3–4–4 · zhi3 shi4 zi4

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Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

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Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

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.

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Compare dictionary sources 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

zi2 si6 zi6

Cantonese word readings for 指事字. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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