立体

りったい · rittai · JLPT N1 · noun

body

🎲 立 stand + 体 body: a body that stands up off the page, with depth

立体 is the opposite of 平面 (flat surface). Anything with length, width and height, like a die, is a 立体.

立 — person standing on ground (大 over 一)
Pictograph of a person standing with arms outstretched on the ground line below. The original oracle bone form clearly shows a frontal human figure planted on the earth. The core meaning 'to stand' extended to 'establish, set up, erect.'

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