Dong Chinese dictionary

róu

soft, flexible

Phonosemantic compound. 矛 represents the sound and 木 represents the meaning.

Components

máo

spear

柔 and 矛 don't sound similar in modern Mandarin due to historical phonetic changes. They were more similar in older Chinese.柔 /*nu/
矛 /*m(r)u/

木 Meaning component

mù

tree

Evolution

Seal script

Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical script

Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Regular script

Modern

Definitions

róu

soft; gentle, pliant; flexible; supple; yielding; rho (Greek letter Ρρ)

Most common words with 柔

Component uses

Meaning component in 2 characters (0 verified)

Sound component in 5 characters (0 verified)

Sources