參

🇹🇼🇭🇰🇯🇵🇰🇷

参

🇨🇳

participate

HSK 10

Nature →Plants →Herbs

cān, shēn

サン、シン

まい.る、まじわる、みつ

삼, 참

Depicts three (三) stars (晶) shining (光). Originally represented the Three Stars constellation (參) in Chinese astronomy. The more common meaning "take part in" is a phonetic loan.

Components

晶 sparkling+ 光 ray+ 三 three =

參 participate

晶 Iconic component

jīng sparkling

crystal

光 Iconic component

guāng ray

light, brilliant, shine

三 Meaning component

sān three

View phonetic series →

Notes

Similar Characters

参 take (simp)咣 large 恍 all of a sudden 晃 sway 桄 a coir-palm 胱 bladder 觥 a cup made 耀 show off 輝 radiance (trad/jp)辉 brightness (simp)叁 participate (simp)仨 coll 闫 village gate (simp)

Historical Evolution

Bronze

Late Shang dynasty (~1100 BC)

Bronze

Mid Western Zhou (~900 BC)

Bronze

Mid Western Zhou (~900 BC)

Bronze

Late Western Zhou (~800 BC)

Bronze

Late Warring States (~250 BC)

Bronze

Late Warring States (~250 BC)

Seal

Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)

Seal

Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)

Seal

Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)

Seal

Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)

Seal

Shuowen (~100 AD)

Seal

Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical

Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)

Clerical

Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)

Clerical

Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical

Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical

Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical

Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Clerical

Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Clerical

Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

參

Regular

Modern

Chinese

参 / 參 [cān]

to take part in; to participate; to join; to attend; to counsel; unequal; varied; irregular; uneven; not uniform; abbr. for 參議院|参议院 Senate, Upper House

参 / 參 [shēn]

ginseng; one of the 28 constellations

Japanese