虚假
xū jiǎ · HSK 7
false
🎭 虚 empty/hollow + 假 fake = hollow-and-fake, i.e. a phony pretense
虚 carries the sense of empty, void, or hollow, while 假 means fake or false. Stacked together they describe something with no real substance behind it: a sham or pretense dressed up to look genuine.
虚 — tiger radical 虍 + hill 丘 (now 业)
Originally depicted a large mound or hill where tigers (虍) roamed, written with 虍 over 丘. Because such high places were often deserted, the meaning shifted from 'big hill' to 'empty, void, vacant,' and by extension 'unreal' or 'humble.' The bottom 丘 was later simplified to 业.
假 — person radical 亻 + 叚 (borrow)
假 combines the person radical 亻 with 叚, which originally meant 'to borrow' and provides the sound. The core idea is a person borrowing something, which extended to 'borrowed,' 'not real,' or 'fake.' From there it also developed the meaning 'leave/vacation' (time borrowed away from work).