TSUMUGU · TOCFL 1 (est.) · 字
瓜
ㄍㄨㄚ · guā
noun — melon, gourd, squash
字源 FORM — what the parts do
瓜形a melon hanging on its vine — the outer strokes are the trailing vine, the centre is the fruit
The whole graph draws a melon hanging from its vine: the two outer strokes curve away as the running tendril, the middle holds the fruit. The picture stayed whole — no parts to break off. From the one fruit came the whole melon-and-gourd family: 西瓜、冬瓜、南瓜.
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
藤蔓垂下來，中間吊著一顆瓜——瓜。
The vine trails down, a single melon swinging at its centre — a melon.
字源記憶法
意 · Meanings
(本義)瓜、西瓜— melon, gourd常用
→傻瓜— (in compounds — e.g. 傻瓜, fool)
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension
關 · Related
爪zhuǎthe lookalike — 爪 is a gripping claw (downward fingers), hangs a melon in the middle