残缺
cán quē · HSK 7
badly damaged
💔 cán = cruel leftover, quē = lacking — cruelly lacking, so badly damaged
残 means cruel or incomplete (a残 body part ruined), 缶 in 缺 is a cracked jar. Together: something so damaged it is missing pieces, shattered beyond wholeness.
残 — 歹 (bones/death) + 戔 (small/cut, phonetic)
A semantic-phonetic compound: 歹 (bare bones, death) gives the meaning of harm or ruin, while 戔 (two 戈 spears, suggesting cutting) supplies the sound. Originally meant to injure or destroy, later extended to 'remnant, leftover' — what remains after damage.
缺 — 缶 (jar) + 夬 (phonetic)
Originally a semantic-phonetic compound: the 缶 component depicts an earthenware jar, while 夬 supplies the sound. The character first referred to a broken or chipped pot, then broadened to mean 'lacking,' 'missing,' or 'deficient' in general.