需
xū · HSK 7
need
🌧️ 需 = 雨 rain on top; the thing you wait for and need when crops are dry
Etymology: originally a figure halted under 雨 (rain), waiting for what is required. The sense shifted from waiting-in-rain to needing. Pronounced xū, it sounds like the start of shoe — a thing you need to go out.
需 — rain 雨 + and 而
Originally a pictograph showing a person standing in the rain, meaning 'to wait' for the rain to stop. The bottom component 而 (originally depicting a beard or a standing figure) was later reanalyzed phonetically. The meaning shifted from 'wait' to 'need' or 'require,' while the older 'wait' sense was taken over by 須.