追
zhuī · HSK 3
to pursue
🏃 辶 (walk radical) + 𠂤 (small heap/troop) — to chase after a fleeing group on foot
Original sense: pursue retreating soldiers. The walk radical 辶 carries motion; 𠂤 once depicted a troop or mound. Modern senses extend from chasing — to pursue a goal, court someone, or reminisce by tracing memory back.
追 — 辶 (walk) + 𠂤 (small mound/heap)
Originally a semantic-phonetic compound: 辶 ('walk/movement') gives the meaning of going after something, while 𠂤 supplied the ancient sound. Early bronze inscriptions show it meaning to chase or pursue an enemy. The modern senses — 'pursue,' 'chase after,' 'retroactively' — all extend from this original idea of following in motion.