TSUMUGU · TOCFL A2 (est.) · 字
苗
苗 ＝ 艸 ＋ 田
ㄇㄧㄠˊ · miáo
noun — a seedling, young sprout; offspring, a strain
字源 FORM — what the parts do
艸義grass, growing plants
Grass (艸) growing up out of a field (田) — the young shoot, 幼苗. Both parts carry meaning, the plant and the ground it rises from. From the sprout come 苗條 (slender) and 苗裔 (a descendant strain).
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
田（田）裡一排嫩芽（艸）齊齊冒頭，剛剛破土。
A row of shoots (艸) pushes up through the field (田), just breaking the soil.
字源記憶法
意 · Meanings
(本義)苗— a seedling, young sprout常用
→幼苗、樹苗— a young plant; a sapling
⇒苗裔、苗條— a descendant strain; slender (loan)
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension