刺绣
cì xiù · HSK 7
to embroider
🧵🪡 刺 prick + 绣 stitch — embroidery is pricking cloth with a needle
刺 (cì) means to prick or stab. 绣 (xiù) carries the silk radical 纟, flagging it as textile work. Together: the repeated pricking motion that builds decorative stitches.
刺 — thorn 朿 (phonetic) + knife 刂 (meaning)
A semantic-phonetic compound. The knife radical 刂 carries the meaning of cutting or piercing, while 朿 (a thorn) supplies both the sound and reinforces the idea of something sharp. Original sense was 'to stab' or 'pierce', later extended to 'thorn', 'sting', and figuratively 'to criticize sharply'.
绣 — silk radical 纟 + 秀 (xiù, elegant/grain in flower)
A semantic-phonetic compound: the silk radical 纟 signals the meaning (thread, embroidery), while 秀 supplies the sound 'xiù' and hints at elegance. The character originally referred to ornamental needlework on silk, and by extension came to mean 'embroider' or anything richly decorated.