权衡
quán héng · HSK 7
to balance
⚖️ 权 = the sliding weight + 衡 = the balance beam, so together: to weigh a matter
Both characters name parts of an old steelyard scale: 权 was the counterweight, 衡 the balance beam. Putting them together gives the act of weighing options and balancing pros against cons.
权 — wood 木 + 雚 (heron, phonetic)
Originally a phono-semantic compound: 木 (tree/wood) gives the meaning, while 雚 supplies the sound 'quan'. The early sense referred to a specific tree, then shifted to mean a weight used on a steelyard balance. From 'weight' it extended metaphorically to 'authority' and 'power', the dominant modern meaning.