听见
tīngjiàn · HSK 1
hear
👂 听 (listen) + 见 (perceive/see) = hear and register the sound
听 is the verb 'listen' and 见 marks successful perception, the same 见 in 看见 (see) and 闻见 (smell). The 见 suffix means the action landed — not just listening, but actually hearing it.
听 — mouth 口 + axe 斤 (simplified from 聽)
The traditional form 聽 combined 耳 (ear) with 王, 十, 目, and 心, depicting attentive listening with ear, eyes, and heart. The modern simplified 听 uses 口 (mouth) plus the phonetic 斤 (jīn), a much later shorthand. Despite the 'mouth' component, the meaning 'to listen, hear' was inherited from 聽.
见 — eye 目 over legs 儿 (人)
见 (traditional 見) is a pictograph of a person 儿 with a large eye 目 on top, emphasizing the act of seeing. The original meaning 'to see' broadened over time to include 'to meet,' 'to perceive,' and 'view/opinion.' The simplified form 见 keeps the same structure in cursive shorthand.