短暂
duǎnzhàn · HSK 7
brief
⚡ DUAN (short) + ZHAN (pause) = a short pause, barely a blink
短 means short in length or time, 暂 means temporary or momentary. Together they emphasize something fleeting — a duration so short it barely registers, like a snap of the fingers.
短 — arrow 矢 + bean/vessel 豆
Originally a phono-semantic compound: 矢 (arrow) gives the meaning, since arrows were used as a short measuring stick, while 豆 (an ancient stemmed vessel) supplied the sound. From 'short in length' the meaning broadened to 'short' in time, stature, or quality.
暂 — 斩 (zhǎn, phonetic) + 日 (sun/day, semantic)
暂 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The bottom 日 (sun/day) supplies the meaning, since the word concerns time, while the top 斩 (zhǎn, 'to cut') gives the sound. The original sense was a brief, cut-off span of time, which became today's meaning of 'temporarily' or 'for a short while.'