冰 | bing

In Mandarin Chinese, 冰 (Pinyin: bīng 🔊) could be a noun meaning “ice”, a verb “to freeze”, or an adjective for “freezing”, “frozen” or “ice-cold”. It is also a slang term for a recreational drug methamphetamine (probably from “ice”, one of its English synonyms).

冰 looks very much like the character 水 “water” with two additional strokes 冫 which, in turn, represent a radical form of 仌, which is a pictogram of ice (also pronounced bīng). We also saw two (slightly different) strokes in 冬 “winter”, a season that has something to with “ice” and “cold”!

氷 is an alternative form of 冰 featuring only one extra stroke; this form is more common in Japan. Lawrence J. Howell writes in his Etymological Dictionary of Han/Chinese Characters:

The relevant seal inscription form shows cracks spreading over the ice of a river frozen in winter → ice → be frozen; freezing cold.

Compounds of 冰 include

• 冰 + 茶 = 冰茶 (bīngchá): iced tea
• 冰 + 山 = 冰山 (bīngshān 🔊): iceberg
• 溜 + 冰 = 溜冰 (liūbīng 🔊): ice-skating

The Chinese name of Disney’s animated blockbuster Frozen is 冰雪奇缘 (bīng xuě qí yuán), literally “Ice and snow romance”.

More photos of ice @ Shutterstock.

季 | jì

In Mandarin Chinese, 季 (Pinyin: jì 🔊) is a noun that means “quarter of a year” or “season”. 四季 (sìjì), naturally, refers to four seasons, i.e. 春 (spring), 夏 (summer), 秋 (autumn) and 冬 (winter). Some other compound words of 季 include

• 季 + 风 = 季风 (jìfēng 🔊): monsoon
• 雨 + 季 = 雨季 (yǔjì): rainy season
• 花 + 季 = 花季 (huājì): the flower of one’s youth
• 月 + 季 = 月季 (yuèjì): China rose (Rosa chinensis)

According to Wiktionary, 季 is an ideogrammic compound of 禾 “grain” and 子 “a child”, “a seed” etc.

More photos related to rice, cereals, grains and sea glass @ Shutterstock.

冬 | dōng

In Mandarin Chinese, 冬 (Pinyin: dōng 🔊) is a noun that means “winter”. 冬 is also an alternative form of 咚, an onomatopoeic word that could be translated as “rat-a-tat-tat” (if it is a repeating sound like knocking on a door) or “bang”, “boom”, “thud”, “thump” (if it is a sound of something falling).

As for the origin of 冬, Lawrence J. Howell in his Etymological Dictionary of Han/Chinese Characters provides the following explanation:

Originally, a depiction of food tied to a cord that winds about a peg. A seal inscription form adds 氷 <he must have meant 仌> ice → winter (season when preserved / stored food is consumed). Compare 蓄.

More photos related to winter, ice and sea glass @ Shutterstock.