身

shēn
#164 most
frequent character
body, life, oneself, personally

Character breakdown

Source: Make Me a Hanzi.

身 is a person seen from the side, with the belly made large. It first meant 'human abdomen'. The meaning grew to 'body', then 'self, I', 'life', and 'social status'.

Drawn as: person, side view; belly emphasized

身 as a component in other characters

meaning4 characters
躺躲躯躬
empty1 character
射

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Homophones

HSK 5
伸shēn
to stretch, to extend
参shēn
ginseng, one of the 28 constellations
申shēn
to extend, to state, to explain

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