Pictograph of a person with a person with a large belly, representing someone deformed. Based on the original meaning "physically impaired". Later meaning shifted to "yellow; sallow", a skin color associated with illness.

Evolution

Oracle script

(~1250-1000 BC)

Bronze script

Early Western Zhou (~1000 BC)

Seal script

Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical script

Jin dynasty (266-420 AD)

Regular script

Modern

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