剧场
jùchǎng · HSK 3
theater
🎭 剧场 = drama (剧) + venue (场), a play-venue
剧 means drama or play; 场 means a场地 venue or open space used for events (also in 机场 airport, 广场 plaza). Together: the venue where dramas are staged — a theater.
剧 — 豦 (tiger+pig) + 刂 knife radical
Originally written 劇, a phono-semantic compound: 豦 (jù, a fierce beast) gives the sound, while 刂 (knife) suggests intensity or cutting action. The original meaning was 'severe' or 'intense,' later extended to 'drama/play' since theatrical performances were dramatic and intense. 剧 is the simplified form.
场 — earth 土 + 昜 (bright/rising)
Originally a flat open ground used for sun-drying grain or for ritual offerings, hence 土 'earth' as the meaning component. 昜 supplies the sound and hints at an open, sunlit space. The meaning broadened to any open area or venue, and as cháng it still refers to a threshing floor or a session/spell of something.