网友
wǎng yoǔ · HSK 1
online friend
🌐👥 网友 = 网 (net/web) + 友 (friend)
网 means net or web (and by extension the Internet), 友 means friend. Together: a friend made through the web — an online friend or fellow Internet user.
网 — net radical 冂 + 亡 (phonetic)
網 (simplified 网) originally pictured a hunting or fishing net, with crossed mesh lines inside a frame. The modern simplified form 网 keeps that net shape directly. The traditional 網 adds 糸 (silk thread) for the material and 亡 as a phonetic hint for the wǎng sound.
wǎng yǒu · HSK 4
online friend
🕸️👥 网 (net/web) + 友 (friend) = web-friend = online friend
网 originally meant a fishing net, now also means internet/web. 友 is friend. Together: a friend made through the web — netizen or online buddy.
网 — net radical 冂 + 亡 (phonetic)
網 (simplified 网) originally pictured a hunting or fishing net, with crossed mesh lines inside a frame. The modern simplified form 网 keeps that net shape directly. The traditional 網 adds 糸 (silk thread) for the material and 亡 as a phonetic hint for the wǎng sound.