冷 from HSK Level 1 Vocabulary List

The Chinese character 冷 (lěng) for "cold" is composed of two parts: the radical 冰 (bīng) for "ice" on the left, and the phonetic component 冷 (lěng) on the right. The radical 冰 indicates that the character is related to something cold, while the phonetic component 冷 provides the pronunciation.The original form of 冷 was 冫, which was a pictograph of icicles. Over time, the character evolved into its current form, with the addition of the phonetic component 冷.The character 冷 is used in a variety of words related to cold weather, such as 冷水 (lěngshuǐ) for "cold water", 冷风 (lěngfēng) for "cold wind", and 冷气 (lěngqì) for "air conditioning". It can also be used to describe something that is emotionally cold, such as 冷漠 (lěngmò) for "indifferent" or 冷酷 (lěngkù) for "ruthless".The character 冷 is also used in some Chinese idioms, such as 冷若冰霜 (lěngrùbīngshuāng) for "as cold as ice" and 冷眼旁观 (lěngyǎnpángguān) for "to watch with indifference".Overall, the character 冷 is a versatile character that can be used to express a variety of meanings related to cold weather and emotional coldness.