少量
shǎoliàng · HSK 7
scattering
🤏 少 = few + 量 = quantity, so 少量 = a few-quantity, i.e. a small amount
少 means few or little; 量 means quantity or measure. Put together they name just a small amount of something. The shǎo here is the third-tone few from 多少 how-much.
少 — 小 (small) + 丿 (slash stroke)
Originally a pictograph showing four small dots or grains, suggesting 'few' or 'small in quantity'. Over time it became distinguished from 小 (small) by adding a downward stroke. The core meaning shifted toward 'few' or 'little in number', while 小 kept the sense of physical smallness.
量 — top 旦 (sunrise) + bottom 里 (village/measure)
Originally a pictograph of a funnel or measuring vessel used to gauge grain. The form evolved to suggest weighing at sunrise (旦) over a measured area (里). It split into two readings: liáng 'to measure' (the action) and liàng 'quantity' (the result).