副作用
fùzuòyòng · HSK 7
side-effect
💊 副 (secondary) + 作用 (effect/action) = secondary effect = side-effect
副 means secondary or auxiliary (as in 副总 vice-president). 作用 = action/effect, built from 作 (to make/do) + 用 (use). Together: a secondary action — the unintended effect alongside the main one.
副 — 刀 knife + 畐 (full vessel, phonetic)
A semantic-phonetic compound. The knife radical 刂 (刀) suggests cutting or splitting, while 畐 (a full jar) gives the sound. The original sense was 'to split in two,' which extended to 'secondary' or 'deputy' — something paired alongside the main one.
作 — person radical 亻 + 乍
作 combines the person radical 亻 with 乍, which originally depicted a sudden action or making something. The character means 'to do, make, or create,' with 亻 indicating human activity and 乍 supplying the sound. Over time it broadened to cover works, deeds, and acting as something.
用 — pictograph of a bucket or wooden pail
用 originally depicted a bucket or container, possibly a sacrificial vessel made of wood. Over time it was borrowed to mean 'to use' or 'employ,' losing its concrete object sense. The modern meaning 'use' has been standard since early classical Chinese.