Dong Chinese dictionary

yíng

win

Phonosemantic compound. 貝 represents the meaning and 𣎆 represents the sound.

Components

貝 Meaning component

bèi

sea shell

Shells were used as currency in ancient China.

𣎆 Sound component

luò

legendary animal

贏 and 𣎆 don't sound similar in modern Mandarin due to historical phonetic changes. They were more similar in older Chinese.

Evolution

Bronze script

Early Western Zhou (~1000 BC)

Seal script

Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical script

Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Regular script

Modern

Definitions

yíng

win; surplus, gain, profit; to beat; to win; to profit

Most common words with 贏

Sources