挂号
guà hào · HSK 7
to register
🏥📋 挂 (hang) + 号 (number) = hang up your number — register
挂 means to hang or hook, 号 means number or label. Together: hang up your number on the board, i.e. take a ticket and register. Same logic extends to registered mail — your item gets a tracking number attached.
挂 — hand radical 扌 + 圭 (jade tablet, phonetic)
挂 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The hand radical 扌 gives the meaning, since hanging something requires the hand to place it on a hook or peg. The right side 圭 (guī, a jade tablet) supplies the sound, close to the modern reading guà. Originally written 掛, it meant to suspend or hang up.
号 — mouth 口 + tiger 虎
Originally written 號, combining 口 (mouth, indicating a cry or call) with 虎 (tiger) as the phonetic and a hint at a loud roar. It first meant to shout or call out, then extended to a name, title, or signal. The simplified form 号 keeps only the upper element.