TSUMUGU · TOCFL C1 (est.) · 字
衙
衙 ＝ 行 ＋ 吾
ㄧㄚˊ · yá
noun — a government office, yamen
字源 FORM — what the parts do
吾聲wú — gives the soundthe inner pair 五 + 口, fully visible
IFwú → yá — the donor's sound drifted right off
行 (行) is the road, the place where business goes back and forth — the office that sits on it. 吾 wú carries the sound, worn far from the modern yá. Together they write the old government office, the 衙門 where the magistrate held court.
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
大門開在路（行）上，門裡是吾（吾），這就是官老爺辦公的衙門。
Gates open onto the road (行); inside sits 吾 — the magistrate's office, the yamen.
字源記憶法
意 · Meanings
(本義)衙門— a government office常用
→官衙— the seat of an official
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension