测
cè · HSK 4
measure
📏 测 = 氵(water) + 则(rule) — water + rule = measure/gauge
Originally meant gauging the depth of water against a fixed rule or standard. The 氵 radical signals water; 则 means rule/standard. Extended from literal depth-measuring to inferring or conjecturing values.
测 — water radical 氵 + 则 (rule/standard)
测 combines the water radical 氵, hinting at meaning, with 则 (rule, standard), which also supplies the sound. Originally it referred to gauging the depth of water, then broadened to mean measuring, surveying, or testing in general.