This character contains the radical for flowing water on the left, and a symbol for water pathways on the right. Because streams naturally split into separate paths, this character came to mean a “school” or “branch” of thought.
school(派)
waterfall(瀧)
When seeing a massive waterfall, ancient people imagined a majestic dragon charging up into the sky, viewing it as the very avatar of a god. This character consists of two parts, beautifully embedding the symbol of that dragon on the right side.
water(水)
This character is beautifully simple, capturing only the dynamic outline of a water splash. Yes, true to its fluid form, this is the character that means ‘water’!
whirlpool(渦)
float(浮)
On the right side of this character, you can see a hand gently cradling a baby, while the left side shows splashes of water. This beautifully suggests that the fluid motion of holding a baby close resembles the graceful stroke of a swimming hand. Therefore, this character captures that very essence to mean ‘float’.
eternal(永)
delta(州)
