鼠标
shǔ biāo · HSK 5
mouse
🖱️🐭 鼠标 = 鼠 (rat/mouse) + 标 (marker/pointer)
Literal compound: the computer mouse is a pointer-rodent. 鼠 means rat or mouse (the animal), and 标 means mark, label, or pointer — same 标 as in 目标 (target) and 商标 (trademark).
鼠 — pictograph of a rat with whiskers, teeth, claws, and tail
鼠 is a pictograph showing a rat or mouse: the top depicts the head and gnawing teeth, while the lower strokes show the belly, claws, and curled tail. It serves as the radical for many rodent-related characters and still means 'rat/mouse' today, including the zodiac Rat.
标 — tree 木 + 票 (ticket/phonetic)
Originally written 標, this is a semantic-phonetic compound: 木 (tree) gives the meaning and 票 supplies the sound. It first referred to the tip or top of a tree, then extended to any marker, sign, or label placed at a prominent point. The simplified form 标 keeps the same structure with a reduced phonetic.