比喻
bǐyū · HSK 7
analogy
⚖️ 比 compare + 喻 make-understand — a comparison that explains
喻 alone means to explain through likeness. The pair forms the general word for figurative comparison — covering both simile and metaphor in Chinese rhetoric.
比 — two 匕 (person) side by side
比 is a pictograph showing two people standing side by side, facing the same direction. From this image of paired figures came the core meaning 'to compare' or 'to be next to,' since comparing things naturally involves placing them alongside each other.