每

Etymology & Components

The Chinese character 每 (měi) is composed of two parts: the radical 艹 (cǎo), which represents grass, and the phonetic component 每 (mèi). The original meaning of 每 was "grass growing densely." Over time, the meaning of 每 expanded to include "every," "each," and "always."The character 每 is first attested in oracle bone script, the earliest known form of Chinese writing. In oracle bone script, 每 is depicted as a clump of grass with a person standing in the middle. This suggests that the original meaning of 每 was "a person standing in a field of grass."In modern Chinese, 每 is used in a variety of contexts. It can be used as a pronoun, an adjective, or an adverb. As a pronoun, 每 means "each one" or "every person." As an adjective, 每 means "every" or "each." As an adverb, 每 means "always" or "constantly."The character 每 is also used in a number of idioms and proverbs. For example, the idiom 每逢佳节倍思亲 (měi féng jiā jié bèi sī qīn) means "on every festival, one misses one's family even more." The proverb 民以食为天 (mín yǐ shí wéi tiān) means "the people take food as their heaven."The character 每 is a versatile and important character in Chinese. It is used in a wide variety of contexts and has a rich history.