TSUMUGU · TOCFL 1 (est.) · 字
青
ㄑㄧㄥ · qīng
adj/noun — blue-green; young, unripe (青年, 青草)
字源 FORM — what the parts do
A sprout (生) over cinnabar (丹) in its well — growth and mineral color together write the blue-green of living plants. From the colour of new growth comes the young and the unripe: 青草、青天、青年.
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
新苗（生）剛冒頭，嫩嫩的——一片青。
A new sprout (生) just breaking ground, tender — and everything is green.
字源記憶法
意 · Meanings
(本義)青色、青綠— blue-green, the colour of plants常用
→青天、青草— the blue sky; green grass常用
⇒青年、青春— young; youth常用
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension