diāo

marten

Phonosemantic compound. represents the meaning and represents the sound.

Components
豸 meaning component

  Meaning component

zhì

  

(dhole), beast

召 sound component

  Sound component

zhàoshào

  

summon

Evolution

貂 Bronze script Mid Western Zhou (~900 BC)

Bronze script

Mid Western Zhou (~900 BC)
貂 Seal script Shuowen (~100 AD)

Seal script

Shuowen (~100 AD)
貂 Clerical script Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical script

Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)
貂 Regular script Modern

Regular script

Modern
Definitions

 

diāo

marten, sable, mink; sable or marten (genus Martes)

Most common words with 貂
Freq.
Word
Meaning

sable or marten (genus Martes)

貂蝉

Diaochan (-192), one of the four legendary beauties 四大美女[sì​dà​měi​nǚ], in fiction a famous beauty at the break-up of Han dynasty, given as concubine to usurping warlord Dong Zhuo 董卓[Dǒng​Zhuó] to ensure his overthrow by fighting hero Lü Bu 呂布|吕布[Lǚ​Bù]

貂皮

mink fur

水貂

mink (Mustela lutreola, M. vison)

黑貂

sable (Martes zibellina)