■ radical

qiū

autumn

How it’s built

Originally a pictograph of a cricket, since cricket chirps indicate the beginning of autumn. Later the character was reanalyzed as 禾 (grain) + 火 (fire), perhaps alluding to the red color of leaves during autumn.

禾

iconic

grain

火

iconic

fire

Through the ages

Oracle bone script

Bronze script

Seal script

Appears in

Characters that use 秋 as a component, most common first.

愁chóuanxious 瞅chǒuto see 揪jiūto pinch 啾jiūthe wailing of a child 锹qiāoshovel 楸qiūMallotus japonicus 鍬qiāoshovel 鞦qiūleather strap

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