活用
かつよう · katsuyou · JLPT N3 · noun
junction
🔧 活用 = alive + use: a word put to live use changes form
活 means living or active and 用 means use. Putting something to active use is practical use. In grammar, a verb in active use changes its ending to fit the sentence, so 活用 also means conjugation.
活 — water radical 氵 + tongue 舌
Originally a phono-semantic compound: 氵 (water) suggests flowing or liveliness, while 舌 (tongue) hints at the sound. Early forms depicted gushing water, conveying the idea of being lively or alive. The meaning broadened from 'flowing water' to 'living, alive, active.'
用 — pictograph of a bucket or wooden pail
用 originally depicted a bucket or container, possibly a sacrificial vessel made of wood. Over time it was borrowed to mean 'to use' or 'employ,' losing its concrete object sense. The modern meaning 'use' has been standard since early classical Chinese.