初～
しょ～ · sho～ · JLPT N2 · noun
first
🥇 初 = 衣 (cloth) + 刀 (knife): cutting cloth is the first step of sewing
The character shows 'first' as the first cut made when sewing. Use it before a noun, like 初級 (beginner level), or with 初めて (for the first time).
初 — clothes radical 衤 + knife 刀
初 combines 衤 (clothes) and 刀 (knife), depicting the act of cutting cloth to begin making a garment. From this concrete image of starting a tailoring task came the extended meaning 'beginning' or 'first'. It is an associative compound, not phonetic.