TSUMUGU · TOCFL 2 (est.) · 字
枕
枕 ＝ 木 ＋ 冘
ㄓㄣˇ · zhěn
noun — pillow; verb — to rest the head on
字源 FORM — what the parts do
冘聲the phonetic, worn unrecognizable in the modern glyph
I≠the donor's reading drifted off to zhěn
Wood (木) shaped to cradle the head — a pillow, 枕頭. The right side 冘 carried the sound in the old graph but has worn down to a shape no one reads on its own anymore; the cleaner donor still sounds in 沈 and 耽. To lay the head down is 枕戈待旦.
意 · Meanings
(本義)枕頭— pillow常用
→枕著— to rest the head on
→枕木— a railway sleeper / bolster
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension