Dong Chinese dictionary

shén, shí

what

file of ten soldiers

The character is based on the original meaning "file of ten soldiers". The modern meaning "what" is a phonetic loan.

Components

亻 Meaning component

rén

person

亻 is a component form of 人.

十 Meaning component

shí

ten

Evolution

Seal script

Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical script

Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)

Clerical script

Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical script

Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Regular script

Modern

Definitions

shén

file of ten soldiers; mixed, miscellaneous; what

shí

ten (used in fractions, writing checks etc); assorted; miscellaneous

Most common words with 什

Sources