■ radical

zhēn

needle

How it’s built

Simplified form of 針. Phonosemantic compound. 金 represents the meaning and 十 represents the sound.

meaning

metal; gold — 钅 is a component form of 金.

sound

ten — The pronunciation of 針 was similar to 十 in old Chinese, but they no longer sound similar in modern Mandarin due to historical phonetic changes.