嘴zuǐ

嘴

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Simplified · Today

简体

Simplified Chinese

The character 嘴 (zuǐ, "mouth") remains unchanged between simplified and traditional forms. It combines the mouth radical 口 with 觜, a component originally depicting a bird's beak — the mouth as a consuming instrument. As the common character for lips and mouth in everyday speech, it appears in compounds like 嘴巴 (mouth), 嘴唇 (lips), and 零食 (snacks).

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Shuowen

嘴, formed from the radical 口 (mouth) on the left and the phonetic component 巽 on the right, originally depicted a mouth opening with a protruding beak. The oracle bone form, though rare, shows a mouth-like shape to signify the organ of speech and eating. The composition reflects the mouth as an opening and the phonetic gives the sound, later extended to mean 'beak' and general 'mouth'.

Pinyin

zuǐ· HSK 2

嘴zuǐ

Character evolution

Shuowen

Pinyin