大厦
dàxià · HSK 7
building
🏢 big (大) + summer-shelter (厂 over 夏) = a grand building
厦 stacks 厂 (roof) on top of 夏 (summer). A roof so massive it shelters an entire summer — that is mansion-scale. Prefix 大 (big) and you have the grandest tower on the block.
大 — pictograph of a person with arms outstretched
大 is a pictograph showing a person standing with arms and legs spread wide. The outstretched arms suggest 'big' or 'great', extending from the literal image of a large stance to abstract meanings like important or grand. It is one of the oldest characters, found on oracle bones.