改日
gǎi rì · HSK 7
another day
📅 改 = change/alter + 日 = day → change the day, i.e. another day
改 (gǎi) means to change or alter; 日 (rì) means day or sun. Together they literally mean change-day, used to politely defer to some other day. Compare 改天 (gǎi tiān), same idea with 天 instead of 日.
改 — 己 (self) + 攴/攵 (action/strike)
改 is a compound of 己 'self' and 攵 (the action radical, originally a hand holding a stick). The image is of striking or applying force to oneself or one's situation, suggesting reform or correction. From this came the modern meaning 'to change, alter, correct'.
日 — pictograph of the sun
日 is a pictograph of the sun, originally drawn as a circle with a dot or stroke inside representing the sun's substance. Over time the round shape was squared off into the modern rectangular form. It means 'sun' and by extension 'day'.