TSUMUGU · TOCFL 1 · 字
千
ㄑㄧㄢ · qiān
num — thousand
字源 FORM — what the parts do
IFTrén → qiān — an old pairing, worn outside today's families
A tally: one stroke (一) drawn across a person (人) — one figure standing for a thousand. 人 also lent its old sound, worn far, to qiān. From the count to the beyond-count: 千萬、千山萬水.
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
點兵的人數到一千，在木牌的人（人）形上畫下一橫（一）。
At the thousandth man, the tally-keeper draws one stroke (一) across the figure (人) on his board.
字源記憶法
意 · Meanings
(本義)一千— a thousand常用
→千萬、千山萬水— thousands — more than counting
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension