万能
wàn néng · HSK 7
all-purpose
🛠️ 万 ten-thousand + 能 ability = able to do ten thousand things, all-purpose
万 means ten thousand (a myriad), 能 means ability or capable. Something with ten thousand abilities can handle any job — hence all-purpose, universal, omnipotent. Think master key or all-in-one tool.
万 — top 一 + 𠃌 (hook) over 丿
Originally a pictograph of a scorpion, used in oracle bone script. It was borrowed phonetically to mean 'ten thousand' and the original scorpion sense was lost. The traditional form 萬 shows the scorpion more clearly; 万 is a simplified variant long used as a common shorthand.
能 — 厶 (head) + 月 (body/flesh) + 匕匕 (legs)
Originally a pictograph of a bear, showing its head, body, and powerful legs. Because bears were seen as strong and capable, the character was borrowed to mean 'ability' or 'can'. A new character 熊 (with the fire radical 灬) was later created for 'bear'.