增

Phono-semantic compound:

土 (흙 토) — semantic, grounding, earth, foundation; often added to verbs indicating growth or increase

曾 (일찍 증) — phonetic, provides the sound (증 / zēng)

Originally, 曾 indicated “deep, layered, repeated.”

This explains why 增 carries the idea of accumulation or layers of increase.

Seal script (篆書) already shows 土 beneath 曾.

Earlier bronze forms occasionally use 曾 alone to mean both “increase” and “layer”

Semantic evolution:

increase → add → augment → expand → intensify

This made it a productive morpheme in:

- economics (increase in price)

- emotions (anger, sorrow increasing)

- military (increase troops)

- literature (day by day increases)

增加 (증가) — increase; growth

增設 (증설) — add, install more

增員 (증원) — increase staff; reinforcements

增補 (증보) — supplement; expand content

增進 (증진) — enhance, improve, promote

增大 (증대) — enlarge; magnify

增強 (증강) — strengthen, augment

Formal / academic

激增 (격증) — dramatic increase

遞增 (체증) — gradual increase

日增月益 (일증월익) — increase day by day and month by month

Classical / literary uses

增減 (증감) — increase and decrease; fluctuation

益增 (익증) — increase further

愈增 (유증) — grow even greater

Distinction 增 vs 曾:

曾 can sometimes stand in place of 增 in ancient texts.

But in modern Chinese and Korean, the meanings are fully differentiated.

曾 as phonetic originally meant:

- “once; formerly; before”

- “layered; repeated” (extended meaning)

Common phonetic family includes:

增、憎、繒、層 (layer), 曽 (ancient form)

Their shared nuance of “layers, repetition, intensity” explains the semantic relation.

Classical citations:

《史記·平準書》 (Records of the Grand Historian)

「物貴則民貧，物賤則民富，貴賤相反而不常，故損益以平之，使不甚增減。」

“When goods grow expensive the people become poor; when goods are cheap they become rich. To prevent excessive increase or decrease, one must regulate by decreasing or adding” — 增減 = increase or decrease

《漢書·食貨志》 (Book of Han)

「歲旱則賦斂益急，歲豐則賦斂稍增。」

“In years of drought the taxes were collected more harshly; in years of plenty they increased slightly.”

《後漢書·郭丹傳》 (Book of the Later Han)

「恩德日增。」

“His kindness increased day by day.”

《詩經·小雅·節南山》 (The Book of Songs)

「憂心如焚，不敢或遑，靡神不宗，無日不劇，憂心如醉，日以增累。」

“My anxious heart burns; no moment of rest. Day after day my burdens increase.”

曾 as ancient interchangeable form

𡏆 (rare)