求证
qiú zhèng · HSK 7
to seek proof
🔍 求 seek + 证 proof = to seek proof; to ask for confirmation
求 means to seek or request; 证 means proof, evidence, or a certificate. Stack them and you get the act of chasing down hard confirmation. Same 证 appears in 证据 (evidence) and 身份证 (ID card).
求 — pictograph of a fur garment
求 originally depicted a fur coat or pelt, with hairs hanging from the sides. It was later borrowed phonetically to mean 'seek' or 'request,' and the original 'fur' meaning was taken over by 裘. Today 求 almost always means to seek, beg, or pursue.
证 — speech radical 讠 + 正 (correct/upright)
证 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The speech radical 讠 (言) signals it relates to words or testimony, while 正 (zhèng, 'upright/correct') gives the sound and hints at 'verifying truth.' Originally written 證, it meant to testify or prove; today it means evidence, certificate, or to prove.