Lesson 08 入 the entering symbol
Lesson 08 入 the entering symbol
Let’s learn a new symbol 入, it looks like the human symbol 人, please look at the animation I created for you. It starts as a 人 human form (facing right-hand side), then this human form 人 turns to the left-hand side (as seen in the figure), seems to be preparing to enter somewhere. We will also learn some other characters contain this 入 symbol, like 內, 全, and 兩.
入
enter
pronunciation: Rù
Please follow the two strokes (red and blue) shown in the animation, start from the red stroke, which could be a lifting leg, then draw the second (blue) stroke, which includes head and the other leg behind.
The difference between 入 (enter) and 人 (human) is the head part, you can see the head of 入 (enter) is turning left, and the human 人 is not (actually 人 symbol is facing right-hand side in calligraphy). Please review Lesson 06 for writing strokes of 人 the human symbol.
About this 入 (enter) symbol, it also means becoming a member of some society, group, entering some special circle. There are even more meanings in Japanese kanji about this symbol 入, about entering, coming, even the unit of money or merchandise.
The pronunciation for symbol 入 is “Rù”, which is a retroflex consonant in speaking Mandarin. I will add a reference link for practicing 3 available tones about Rú, Rǔ, Rù at the end of this lesson.
Maybe you have noticed that I kept emphasizing the retroflex consonant, because I think it’s important to use it correctly while speaking standard Mandarin. I have found some people just mixing up the retroflex and non-retroflex words due to their dialect accents. For example, when speaking this 入 (Rù) word, don’t misuse it as Lù, the non-retroflex tone. Using Lù might lead to other words like 路 (Lù, road), 鹿 (Lù, deer), etc., and that might confuse the listeners.
Here is a 2-character Chinese word: 入口, the Entrance. It’s the combination of 入 (enter) and 口 (mouth, see Lesson 04). The pronunciation for 入口 is rù-kǒu, it’s an important Chinese word for you when you are looking for the Entrance 入口 sign of a place. By the way, the Exit is 出口, it’s 出 (out) plus 口 (mouth), and we are going to learn this 出 (out) symbol sooner or later.
內
inside, internal
pronunciation: Nèi
Here comes a new word 內, it means inside, internal. Please look at the animation carefully, write the 入 (enter) symbol first (red strokes), then add a ㄇ shape cover (blue strokes), so the whole thing is a symbolic composition of 入 (enter) within a ㄇ cover, then here comes the symbol 內, as the meaning of “inside, internal”, quite interesting! isn’t it?
Please watch for the little hook at the lower right corner of the ㄇ symbol.
This symbol 內 (inside, internal) normally used as an adjective combining with a noun behind, like the 2-character word 內力, 內 (internal) + 力 (force), 內力 is the inner force induced by qigong exercise. We haven’t learn the force symbol 力 yet, gush! If we have learned more basic Chinese characters, then we could create more 2-character words (most modern Chinese words contain 2 characters). So please just be patient and keep learning.
全
whole, complete
pronunciation: Quán, Chuán
This symbol 全 is the symbol 入 (enter) over the symbol 王 (king, see Lesson 03), it means “whole, complete” and could be used as an adjective in front of a noun, or as a verb “to complete, preserve” at the end of a classic verse.
For example, 全国, the whole country, it’s the combination of 全 (whole) plus 国 (country, Lesson 05). Please note that this 国 (country) is a simplified symbol for the traditional symbol 國.
兩
two, both
pronunciation: Liǎng
(traditional Chinese)
Let me introduce a traditional Chinese symbol 兩 (two, both), which contains two 入 (enter) symbols. It’s a little bit complicated to write the whole thing. As shown in the animation, there are two 入 (enter) symbols inside a bigger symbol 帀, I guess it represents some kind of currency made in silks in ancient China.
Please keep watching for the little hook at the lower right corner of the 帀 symbol. There are many such kind of little hooks in Chinese writing, usually appeared at the end of a stroke.
Here is a 2-character word 兩全, the combination is 兩 (two, both) plus 全 (complete), this 兩全 means “satisfy both sides, accommodate both demands”. This word 兩全 is frequently used in classic Chinese verse.
The symbol 兩 is also a Chinese unit of weight in old times, equal to 50 grams. This 兩 unit was used for silver or gold (as money) or something precious like traditional Chinese herb medicine.
Let’s learn the same word yet the simplified character 两, it looks very similar with the tradition character 兩.
两
two, both
pronunciation: Liǎng
(simplified Chinese)
This simplified symbol 两 is much less complicated. Please look at the structure of the animation, there are two human symbols 人 aligned together, with a horizontal bar on the top of them, and these two human symbols 人 are inside a ㄇ space. Please keep watch for the little hook at the lower right corner of the ㄇ symbol.
Let’s create a new 2-character word, 两人, that means two persons, 两 (two, both) plus 人 (human, person, Lesson 06), used to specify two persons in a phrase. For example, you and I, are 两人 (two persons together).
Another 2-character word, 两天, two days, it’s 两 (two) plus 天 (day, see Lesson 6). When people ask how many days do you…then you reply 两天 (two days), I mean if this is your right answer. Sometimes Chinese people might give you an uncertain answer such as 两三天 (2-3 days), that’s 两 (two) plus 三 (three, Lesson 01) plus 天 (day, Lesson 6), such a reply 两三天 (2-3 days) could be just an estimated time.
Thanks for your reading and practicing, any feedback is welcome.
Review and further study
入
enter
pronunciation: Rù
with pronunciation play button, calligraphic strokes animation, different calligraphic styles, related Chinese words, and more…
retroflex consonant in Mandarin
入口
Entrance
pronunciation: rù kǒu
with pronunciation play button, related Chinese words, and more…
內
inside, internal
pronunciation: Nèi
with pronunciation play button, calligraphic strokes animation, different calligraphic styles, related Chinese words, and more…
內力
inner force
pronunciation: nèi lì
with pronunciation play button, related Chinese words, and more…
全
whole, complete
pronunciation: Quán, Chuán
with pronunciation play button, calligraphic strokes animation, different calligraphic styles, related Chinese words, and more…
全国
the whole country
pronunciation: quán guó
兩
two, both
pronunciation: Liǎng
(traditional Chinese)
with pronunciation play button, calligraphic strokes animation, different calligraphic styles, related Chinese words, and more…
兩全
satisfy both sides
accommodate both demands
pronunciation: liǎng chuán
with pronunciation play button, related Chinese words, and more…
两
two, both
pronunciation: Liǎng
(simplified Chinese)
两人
two persons
pronunciation: liǎng rén
两三天
2-3 days
pronunciation: liǎng sān tiān
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