姑 (gū) — father's sister, aunt; (also) husband's mother; a young woman (姑娘)

entries → 姑

TSUMUGU · TOCFL 2 (est.) · 字

姑 character · TOCFL 2 (est.)

姑＝女＋古

ㄍㄨ · gū

noun — father's sister, aunt; (also) husband's mother; a young woman (姑娘)

字源 FORM — what the parts do

女義a woman — the female relative

古聲gǔ — gives the shape, worn to gūold, of long standing

A woman (女) and the sound 古 (gǔ), nudged to gū. 說文 fixes the kin: 夫母也 once, and the father's sister — the elder women of a household, women of long standing, which 古 (old) quietly suits. From there 姑姑 (aunt), 姑娘 (a young woman), and the adverb 姑且 (for the time being, just for now).

故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by

女（女）字邊一個古（古）——家裡輩分老的那位女眷，姑。

A woman (女) beside 古 — the senior woman of the house, 姑.

字源記憶法

意 · Meanings

(本義)姑姑、姑母— father's sister, aunt常用

→姑娘— a young woman, girl常用

⇒姑且— for the moment, just for now

(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension