奈

Originally a pictograph.

Early forms depict a fruit-bearing tree, specifically interpreted as a crabapple / apple tree.

Later, the character was phonologically borrowed to express the abstract function word “how; what can be done,” and this borrowed meaning became dominant.

As a result, the concrete botanical sense largely faded, while the grammatical and abstract usage prevailed.

Semantic development:

- concrete object — crabapple / apple tree

- borrowed function — “how?”

- abstract inevitability — helplessness, lack of alternatives

奈 is common in classical-style expressions and set phrases, especially those expressing helplessness or inevitability.

Common compounds and patterns:

무내 (無奈 / 无奈) — helpless; having no choice

내하 (奈何) — what to do; how can one deal with

불가내 (不可奈) — unavoidable (classical)

내여 (奈與) — how could one deal with (classical)

Examples:

어찌할 수 없다 (無奈하다) — there's nothing I can do

奈何天下之事 — what can be done about affairs of the world?

Unlike 何 (what; how, neutral), 奈 often carries a nuance of frustration or resignation.

Related characters (question & inevitability):

何 — what; how

如 — as; how

若 — if; how about

無 — not; without

免 — avoid; be spared

Among these, 奈 uniquely expresses “how, yet there is no solution”.