TSUMUGU · B1 (est.) · 字
頓
頓 ＝ 屯 ＋ 頁
ㄉㄨㄣˋ · dùn
verb — to bow (the head); to pause, stop short; measure word — for meals, beatings (一頓飯)
字源 FORM — what the parts do
屯聲tún — gives the sounda sprout pushing up against packed earth, gathering and held
ITtún → dùn — initial and tone shift
A head (頁) brought down — the original is to bow it to the ground, to kowtow. 屯 tún carries the sound and a held-back picture: a sprout massed against hard earth, checked. From bowing the head come the stops: 頓首 (kowtow)、停頓 (a pause)、頓時 (in that checked instant, suddenly). The pause to eat made it the measure word — 一頓飯, a meal.
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
一個頭（頁）猛地往下一磕，停在那兒（屯）——叩首。
The head (頁) goes down hard and holds there (屯) — a bow to the ground.
字源記憶法
意 · Meanings
(本義)頓首、叩頭— to bow the head to the ground
→停頓、頓時— to pause, stop short; in that instant常用
⇒一頓飯、一頓罵— measure word — a meal, a bout of scolding常用
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension