Rice-Semen Analysis of Chinese Characters

Rice-semen metaphor analysis

Compiled by Jennifer Ball © September 4, 2010

Black = rice (米 or 禾) component
Blue = essence, youth 青component
Green = seek 求 component
Red = miscellaneous
Mandarin is first pronunciation (Cantonese is in parentheses)

Rice Component
籽 seed, pip, pit, stone
zi3 (zi2)
䊘 grain (rice + descendant = grain)
jiu4 (zaau6)

2nd char:胄= 由cause +月 flesh = to cause flesh
= descendant (also helmet, headpiece)
䱊 roe or spawn, a fish
mi3 (mai5)
精 essence; semen; spirit
jing1, qing2, jing4 (zeng1 zing1)
䊝 exile; to banish
xie4 (sit3)
靝 (in taoism) the heaven tian1
(no Cant. given)

Essence, youth component

圊 pigsty, restroom
qing1 (cing1)
青 green / blue / black / green grass / not ripe / young / youth / youthful / the skin of bamboo / as in 蛋青-the white of an egg / short for Tsinghai Province or Tsingtao
qing1, jing1 (ceng1 cing1)
情 feeling, sentiment, emotion qing2 (cing4)
婧 modest, supple jing4 (zing6)
猜 guess, conjecture, suppose; feel cai1 (caai1)
清 clear; distinct; complete; pure; clear, pure, clean; peaceful qing1, qing4 (ceng1 cing1 )
睛 eyeball, pupil of eye jing1, jing3 (zing1)
錆 the color of a mineral qiang1 (coeng1)
蜻dragonfly qing1, jing1 (cing1) (the emperor is the dragon)
毒 poison, venom; poisonous du2 dai4 (duk6)
(related: 毐 immoral, adulterer ai3 (oi2) —note two horizontal lines on top instead of three)
䮳 to give birth to, to bring and to rear (interchangeable 蕃) to increase; to multiply; to propagate
fan2 (faan4)
数 number; several, count; fate
shu4, shu3, cu4, shuo4 (sou2 sou3)
類 class, group, kind, category, type; similar; like; to resemble
lei4, li4 (leoi6)
糅 blend, mix
rou3, rou2 (jau2 nau6)
料 consider, conjecture; materials, ingredients
liao4, liano2 (liu2 liu6)
種seed; race, breed; to plant
zhong1 chong4 zhong4 (cung4 zung2)
䅦 feeble; weak of the rice plant (It only exists because someone tends it; there is the stable field to allow a weak plant to grow.)
mao2 (nau4)
慕 admire; long for, desire;
mu4 (mou6)
蕃 flourishing, to reproduce, foreign things
fan2 (faan4) fan2,1, bo2, pi2, bo1
兾 to hope for; to wish
ji4 (no Cant. given)
糞 manure, dung, night soil
fen4 (fan3)
㔴 agricultural implement; farm tools, a big sacrificial vessel; a tripod of bronze with two ears; a caldron
yi4 (zik6)
屎 excrement, dung, shit
shi3, xi1 (hei1 si2)
䐖 (same as VEA3567) to laugh heartily; to roar with laughter; to groan; to moan
yi2 (ngaai4 zi4)

Seek Component
㞗 the male organ, obscene language, vulgar expression
qiu2 (gau1)
求 seek; demand, request; beseech
qiú (kau4)
觩 strong
qiu2 ( kau4)
渌 strain
lu4 (luk6)
䚏 to love; intimate; near to; dear; parents; relatives, to see; to look at; to observe
leng4, li4, lin4 (no Cant. given)
憐 pity, sympathize
lian2 (lin4)
僯 ashamed
lin3 (no Cant. given)

潾 clear water
lin2 (leon4)
渊 surge up, bubble up, gush forth
yuan1 (jyun1
敉 pacify, smooth, stabilize, peaceful
mi3 (mai5 mei3 mei5
侎 to soothe, to pacify; to settle, to establish
mi3 mei3 (no Cant. given)
粲 polish; bright, radiant; smiling
can4 (caan3)
泰 safe; peaceful; most; Thai(land); grand; great, exalted, superior; big
tai4 (taai3)
眯 be blinded, blind as with dust
mi3, mi1 mi4, mi2(mai5 mei1 mi1)
瞇 to close (the eyes); to squint
mi1 ( mai4 mai5 mei1 mi1)
瞵 to stare at
lin2 lin4 lian2 (leon4)
燐 phosphorus lin2 (leon4)
銤 americum (because of the platinum?)
mi3 (mai5 )
䗲 firefly
lin4 (no Cant. given)
鱗 fish scales
lin2 (leon4)
粥 rice gruel, congee
zhou1 yu4 zhu4 (zuk1)
鬻 (alternate form of 粥) sell; child, childish; nourish
yu4, zhou1, zhu3, zhu4, ju1 (juk6)
糜 rice gruel, congee; mashed
mi2, mei2 (mei4)

Miscellaneous

not rice, but comparison縻 tie up.
mi2 (mei4)

not rice, but comparison 蘼 millet
mi2 (no Cant. given)
䊀 paste; to paste, sticky; glutinous, to stick
hu2 (wu4)
粘 viscous, mucous; glutinous
nian2, lian1, zhan1 (nim1 nim4 zim1)

䊗 a kind of grain; yellow color; not sticky, (same as 餭) fried puffy shredded, sugar-plums; sweetmeats
huang2, huang3 (wong4)
䊦 food (some food as glutinous rice tamale — made by wrapping the rice in broad leaves of reeds and boiled for a few hours –usually with other ingredients, as dates, meat, oyster, beams, etc.
ya2 ye4 (zit3)
粿 rice cake
guo3 (gwo2)
䉾 bad; poor quality of rice
mi4 (bei3 bui6 pui3)
糙 coarse, harsh, rough, unpolished rice
cao1 (cou3)
粗 rough, thick, course; rude
cu1 (cou1) (synonyms: 觕麤麄)
㫧 (non-classical form of 暴) violent; fierce; atrocious; cruel, sudden
bao4 (bok3 bou6 keoi4)
謎 riddle, conundrum; puzzle
mi2 mei4 mi4(mai4 mai6)
迷 lost, bewitch, charm, infatuate, bewilder; crazy about; fan; enthusiast; lost; confused
mi2 mei4 mi4 (mai4)
醚 ether
mi2 (mai4)
氣 air, gas, steam, vapor; spirit
qi4, xi4 (hei3)
餼 grain ration; sacrificial victim, gift
xi4, (hei3)
氯 chlorine
lu2 (with umlaut)
㑶 (non-classical form of 愾) anger; passion; rage, to sigh; to groan
xi4 (haai4 hei3 )
愾 anger, wrath, hatred, enmity
kai4 (koi3)
㖤 wrath, anger
han2 (haam4)
㗭 a sound; an echo
(Cant. only: hei1)
窸 faint sound, whisper
xi1 (sik1)
㘀 to sound, a sound, the cry of a bird or animal
zuo4 (zok3)
嘨 roar, howl, scream; whistle
xiao4, chi4 (no Cant. given)
㝥 have a nightmare, sound sleep
mi3 (maai5)
懊 vexed, worried, nervous; regret
ao4
冞 far, deep
mi2 (mei4)
罙 deep
mi2 shen1 (no Cant. given)
匊 handful
ju2 (guk1)
㽤 small plot of land
ju2 (guk1)
㥌 prudent, cautious
ju2 (guk1)
趜 (Cant.) to suffocate
ju2 (guk1)

脒 open; throw away
mi3 (no Cant. given)
㔂 to pare; to pare away; to scrape; to sharpen to a point; to shave; to brush away
lin2 (leon4)
㬥 (an ancient form of 曝) to sun to air; to expose to sunlight, to expose or be exposed; exposure, a tree with scatter or dispersed leaves
pu4 (buk6)
㔄 thin, small cut
su4 (suk1)
㓼 an incised wound; cuts
chi4, chong4 (no Cant. given)
䍘 a general term for nets
mi2 (nei4)
䋛 the clustered embroidery patterns (as tiny and fine rice)
mi2, mi3 (mai5)
缕 (simplified form of 縷) thread; detailed, precise
lü3 (leoi5)
䉛 bamboo basket for washing rice, implements used to move the silkworm
㥪 (simplified form of 慺 ) diligent; industrious; sedulous, to encourage; to make efforts
lou2 (lau4)
偻 humpback; surname
lü3, lou2 (lau4)
㜩 jealous; to envy; jealously
ao4 bie2 (ou3)
yu4 (zuk1)
䐿 gizzard, to store up meat, the five lowest pieces of bone of the spinal column
ao2, ao4, bi4 (ou3)
麋 elk
mi2 (mei4)