[[Characters]] #Characters \ #Society-and-Culture \ #Literature-and-Education # 乞 qǐ to beg ## Components [[乞 qǐ]] ## Meaning 乞 (qǐ) means "to beg" or "to request" in Chinese and is often used in words related to begging or seeking assistance, for example, 乞讨 (qǐtǎo) means "to beg" or "to solicit alms." ## History ## Evolution The character "乞" (qǐ) has undergone significant evolution over time. In its earliest form, found in some oracle bone script, "乞" depicted a person kneeling with their hands stretched out, indicating the act of begging or pleading. As the script evolved into bronze inscriptions, the character became more stylized, with the person's body becoming more square and the hands simplified. During the Qin and Han Dynasties, the seal script simplified the character further. The person's body and hands were reduced to simple strokes. In the clerical script, "乞" became more angular, with the person's body and hands further simplified. The modern form of the character "乞" in regular script is similar to the clerical script. It consists of the radical "丿" (piě) on the top and the radical "人" (rén) on the bottom, representing a person kneeling. Throughout its evolution, the character "乞" has retained its original meaning of "to beg" or "to plead." It is commonly used in words related to begging or seeking assistance. ### Oracular Script ? ### Bronze Script ![[乞 qǐ - bronce.svg]] ### Seal Script ![[乞 qǐ - sello.svg]] ### Clerical Script ![[乞 qǐ - cle.svg]] ### Regular Script ![[乞 qǐ - reg.svg]]