尾巴
yǐba · HSK 4
tail
🐈 尾 (tail) + 巴 (suffix) = tail
尾 means tail; 巴 is a common noun suffix (also in 嘴巴 mouth, 下巴 chin). Extended meanings: the stern of something, or a person tailing someone else like a shadow.
巴 — single pictograph; itself a radical 巴
Traditionally read as a picture of a large snake: the ancient Shuowen dictionary defines 巴 as a snake said to swallow elephants. It also named the ancient Ba state in present-day Chongqing. Today it means 'cling to' or 'long for' (巴不得), and it is a noun suffix in 尾巴 'tail' and 嘴巴 'mouth'.