耐
nài · HSK 7
endure
🪨 而 (beard) + 寸 (rule/hand): originally enduring the punishment of a shaved beard
Sound nài. The old sense was a mild penalty — having your beard cut off — so the character came to mean bear it, withstand, hold out. A rock endures: durable, stands, withstands.
耐 — 而 (beard) + 寸 (hand/rule)
Originally depicted shaving off a beard (而) by hand (寸) as a minor punishment in ancient China. The sense shifted from 'enduring this shame' to the broader meaning 'to endure, bear, withstand.' Today 耐 commonly means patient or resistant, as in 耐心 (patience).