fú hào
character; sign; symbol
这个符号是什么意思？
Zhège fúhào shì shénme yìsi?
What does this symbol mean?
请在方框内输入验证码。
Qǐng zài fāngkuàng nèi shūrù yànzhèngmǎ.
Please enter the verification code in the box.
这些符号代表什么？
Zhèxiē fúhào dàibiǎo shénme?
What do these symbols represent?
标记 (biāo jì)
mark
象征 (xiàng zhēng)
symbol
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The Chinese character 符号 (fúhào) is composed of two parts: 符 (fú) and 号 (hào). The character 符 originally meant "tally" or "token", and was used in ancient China as a form of identification or authorization. It was often made of wood or metal, and was split in half, with one half given to each of two parties who needed to verify each other's identity. The character 号 originally meant "signal" or "command", and was used to refer to a variety of signals, such as smoke signals, drumbeats, or flags. Over time, the two characters came to be used together to refer to any kind of symbol or code, and eventually took on the meaning of "symbol" or "sign".
