生涯
shēngyá · HSK 7
career
🌅 生涯 = 生 life + 涯 shore/limit = the whole shoreline of a life, your lifetime span
生 means life or birth; 涯 means shore or edge. Together they trace life from one shore to the other: the full span of a lifetime, hence a whole career or professional life. Sounds like shung-yah.
生 — sprout 屮 above earth 土
Originally a pictograph showing a young plant sprouting from the ground, with 屮 (a sprout) above 土 (earth). The core meaning is 'to be born, to grow, to live,' which extends to 'raw, unripe, unfamiliar.' The modern form has simplified the sprout shape but preserves the image of new growth emerging from soil.