豆制品
dòuzhìpǐn · HSK 5
Bean products
🫘 豆制品 = bean + made + product (things made from beans)
豆 means bean, 制 means to make or manufacture, and 品 means product or goods. Together they cover tofu, soy milk, and other foods produced from soybeans.
制 — knife 刂 + 未 (tree branches)
Originally depicted a knife 刂 cutting branches from a tree, showing the act of trimming or shaping wood. From this concrete sense of cutting to size came the meanings 'to make,' 'to manufacture,' and by extension 'to control' or 'regulate' — shaping things to a desired form.
品 — three 口 (mouth) stacked
品 is an ideogram showing three 口 (mouths or openings) piled together. The repetition of 口 suggests many people, items, or voices, which gave rise to meanings like 'kinds,' 'goods,' 'rank,' and 'to taste/judge.' The triple stacking is a common Chinese device for indicating plurality or variety.