畏 wèi — fear; revere · English

畏

wèi

fear; revere

At a glance · 畏

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Evolution of the glyph

Five stages, from a sketch of the real object to regular script — tap a stage, drag the timeline, or play the animation.

Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seen
Oracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCE
Seal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCE
Clerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CE
Regular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seenOracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCESeal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCEClerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CERegular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

⚠ Some ancient forms are not attested：oracle bone form、seal script form。No excavated oracle bone / seal artifact is attested for this character yet; we leave it blank rather than fabricate.

甲骨文象鬼（或大头人）持杖之形，表可怕，本义为畏惧。小篆作「畏」。

What the sketch shows

Origins & notes

本义为害怕、敬畏。

Structure

会意字，从甶（鬼头）从攴，表令人畏惧之形。

At a glance

Pinyinwèi

Radical田

Strokes9

UnicodeU+754F

Character type会意

Theme德行

Six languages, one character

Each page offers hreflang versions; switching language keeps the glyphs and meanings aligned.

English fear; revere To fear or hold in awe.

Français craindre; respecter Craindre ou respecter profondément.

Español temer; reverenciar Temer o reverenciar.

العربية يخشى؛ يوقر يخشى أو يوقّر.

Русский бояться; почитать Бояться или глубоко почитать.

Common words

畏惧wèi jùfear
畏wèifear

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