治 - Dong Chinese dictionary

zhì

govern

Original meaning:

river in Shandong

Phonosemantic compound. 氵 represents the meaning and 台 represents the sound. Originally referred to a river in Shandong province. The current meaning is a phonetic loan.

Components

氵 Meaning component

shui, shuǐ

water

氵 is a component form of 水.

台 Sound component

tái

platform

治 and 台 don't sound similar in modern Mandarin due to historical phonetic changes. They were more similar in older Chinese.治 /*C.lrə/, /*lrə-s/
台 /*lə/

Evolution

Seal script

Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical script

Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Regular script

Modern

Definitions

治

zhì

govern, regulate, administer; to rule; to govern; to manage; to control; to harness (a river); to treat (a disease); to wipe out (a pest); to punish; to research

Most common words with 治