TSUMUGU · TOCFL C1 (est.) · 字
萎
萎 ＝ 艸 ＋ 委
ㄨㄟˇ · wěi
verb — to wither, wilt; to shrink, decline
字源 FORM — what the parts do
艸義grass (艸) — the plant radical, written 艹
Grass (艸, written 艹) marks a plant; 委 wěi carries the sound straight across — and its own sense of slumping, giving way, suits a drooping stem. Together they write a plant that wilts: 枯萎, and by extension anything that shrinks back, 萎縮.
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
一株草（艹）低下頭，葉子垂著（委），漸漸枯了。
A stalk of grass (艹) bows its head, leaves drooping (委) — slowly going dry.
字源記憶法
意 · Meanings
(本義)枯萎— to wither, wilt常用
→萎縮— to shrink, atrophy — to draw back and shrivel
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension