月
yuè · HSK 1
moon
🌙 Pictograph: a crescent moon shape — the original oracle-bone form
月 began as a drawing of a crescent moon, chosen over a full circle to distinguish it from 日 (sun). The two inner strokes were originally a single dot marking the moon's surface.
月 — pictograph of crescent moon
月 is a pictograph of a crescent moon, chosen over a full circle to distinguish it from 日 (sun). The inner strokes originally depicted the moon's shadow or markings. As a radical it often relates to the moon, time, or (via a lookalike form of 肉 'flesh') body parts.