Characters 1

从 cóng: from, starting from (coverb introducing the starting point)

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Graphic components: 人 human (doubled).
Etymology: 从 cóng is an ideogram composed of two people 人. Originally, it represented two people walking together or the act of following 從. It was later made more complex 從 before returning to its original form 从 during the simplification. By extension, it came to mean "from", "to follow" or "to obey".

地 dì: earth, ground

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Graphic components: 土 earth; 也 snake/vase.
Etymology: 地 dì is an ideogram composed of earth 土 tǔ and a snake 也 yě. Snakes are very common in the fields of southern China (the Yangtze region) and evoke a sense of belonging to the land they live in.

店 diàn: store, shop
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Graphic components: 广 vast; 占 to occupy.
Etymology: 店 diàn is a phono-semantic compound made up of the radical 广 guǎng "vast" and 占 zhàn "to occupy". Originally, the character had the earth component on the left. It then referred to an inn or a warehouse, and later came to mean any kind of retail store.

交 jiāo: (to cross, to exchange), not used on its own at this stage (part of the word 公交车 gōngjiāochē)

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Graphic components: 亠 lid; 父 father (visual resemblance only).
Etymology: 交 jiāo is a pictogram representing a standing person with crossed legs. Its first meaning is therefore "to cross", hence "to intersect", "to come into contact", then "to exchange", "to communicate" or "to hand over". It is this idea of exchange and circulation that brought 交 into the vocabulary of transportation: 公交车 is short for a longer expression meaning "public transportation vehicle".

路 lù: road, path

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Graphic components: 足 foot; 各 each.
Etymology: 路 lù is an ideogram composed of 足 zú (foot) and 各 gè (each), which once meant "to come". Originally, it represented a path traveled by the feet or a thoroughfare. By extension, it now refers to "roads", "routes" or "means of access". You will find it in Chinese street names, and in the dialogue: 上海的路太多.

旁 páng: side

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Graphic components: 亠 lid; 丷 inverted eight; 冖 roof; 方 square.
Etymology: 旁 páng is an ancient ideogram. Its archaic form in bronze inscriptions combined the component 凡 fán (representing a tray or a square vessel) above 方 fāng (square). As the script evolved, 凡 turned into the modern form 亠 + 丷 + 冖, keeping 方 as its base. Since ancient times, the character has meant side or beside.

铁 tiě: iron

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Graphic components: 钅 metal; 失 shī to lose (approximate phonetic component).
Etymology: 铁 tiě is the simplified form of 鐵. It is a phono-semantic compound made up of the metal radical 钅 (a simplification of 金 jīn, which means "metal" or "gold") and, in the traditional form, a complex phonetic component 戜, replaced by the simpler 失 shī during the simplification. Since ancient times, the character has referred to iron, the metal of tools and weapons, and today of railroad tracks.

往 wǎng: toward, in the direction of (coverb introducing the direction)

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Graphic components: 彳 step, to walk; 主 master (visual resemblance only).
Etymology: 往 wǎng is a phono-semantic compound. The ancient form showed a foot placed above the phonetic component 王 wáng (king): the foot indicated movement, the king gave the sound. Later, the script added, on the left, the walking radical 彳, and the right-hand part became stylized until it looked like 主. Its first meaning is "to go toward", hence its current use as a coverb of direction, and by extension "past, former" (somewhere you can no longer go).

右 yòu: right

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Graphic components: 𠂇 hand; 口 mouth.
Etymology: 右 yòu is a phono-semantic compound made up of a hand 𠂇 and 口 kǒu (mouth). Originally, in oracle bone script, it represented the right hand. Later, the mouth 口 was added, and the whole symbolized assisting with words or giving orders, reflecting the semantic extension toward "to help".

站 zhàn: station, stop; to stand

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Graphic components: 立 standing; 占 zhàn to occupy.
Etymology: 站 zhàn is a phono-semantic compound combining the component 立 lì "standing" and the phonetic element 占 zhàn. This character originally referred to the standing position, then by extension to a place where one stops (such as a transit station). It is also used to count stops, as in the dialogue: 我们坐几站？

走 zǒu: to walk, to leave

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Graphic components: 走 is a graphic component.
Etymology: 走 zǒu represents a person in motion: the ancient form showed a man swinging his arms above a foot, symbolizing running. In Classical Chinese, 走 actually meant "to run"; the meaning later softened to "to walk", "to leave".

左 zuǒ: left

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Graphic components: 𠂇 hand; 工 tool.
Etymology: 左 zuǒ is an ancient pictogram representing a left hand. In its archaic form on oracle bones, it clearly depicted a hand pointing to the left. The modern character is made up of two elements: the upper component 𠂇 (derived from the drawing of a hand) and the lower component 工 gōng (tool), symbolizing the act of assisting (the left hand holding a tool to help the right hand at work). This combination expresses the basic meanings "left" and "assistance".