至る
いたる · itaru · JLPT N3 · verb-godan
to come
🎯 至 began as an arrow striking the ground: it got there, so it means arrive
In oracle-bone script, 至 is an arrow with its tip in the ground line, marking where it landed. The same part sits inside 到 (tō, arrive), as in 到着 (arrival). Sound hook: itaru, as in I tarried, but I arrived.
至 — arrow 矢 inverted + ground 一
至 is a pictograph showing an arrow (矢) landing point-down on the ground (一), depicting the moment it reaches its target. The original meaning was 'to arrive' or 'to reach,' which extended to 'utmost' or 'extreme' — the point beyond which one cannot go further.