标语
biāo yǔ · HSK 7
written slogan
🪧 标语 = mark + words — language displayed on a sign
标 means mark, sign, or label. 语 means words or language. Combined: the bold text on banners, walls, or protest placards.
标 — tree 木 + 票 (ticket/phonetic)
Originally written 標, this is a semantic-phonetic compound: 木 (tree) gives the meaning and 票 supplies the sound. It first referred to the tip or top of a tree, then extended to any marker, sign, or label placed at a prominent point. The simplified form 标 keeps the same structure with a reduced phonetic.