TSUMUGU · TOCFL 3 (est.) · 字
甚
甚 ＝ 甘 ＋ 匹
ㄕㄣˋ · shèn/shén
adv — extremely, going too far; (shén) what
字源 FORM — what the parts do
甘義sweetness — a thing held in the mouth
Sweetness (甘) with a mate (匹) below — pleasure doubled, run past the measure. Going too far is the sense: 太甚, and 甚至 — going even as far as that. The shén of 甚麼 borrowed the graph for the spoken what.
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
甜（甘）的吃了一口又一口，停不下來——過頭了。
One bite of the sweet (甘), then another, then another — past the measure.
字源記憶法
意 · Meanings
shèn
(本義)過分、太甚— excessive — gone past the measure
→甚至— even — going as far as that常用
→甚好、甚多— very — the bookish degree word
shén
(假借)甚麼— what — the spoken question word, also written 什麼常用
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension