濕

Orthographic distinction (critical):

In Taiwan (ROC) standards, the character 溼 is designated as the correct standard form for the meaning “wet, damp”.

溼 (xí) — damp; wet (standard in Taiwan)

濕 (xí) — used in Taiwan only with the meaning “damp place”

This distinction is explicitly supported by Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字):

「濕，坂下溼也。」

“濕 refers to low, damp ground (溼).”

In this explanation, 濕 is glossed as equivalent in meaning to 隰 (marsh; low wet land), not as the adjective “wet”.

Original character: 溼

The true original graph for “to be wet” is 溼, not 濕.

Oracle bone script form:

⿰氵⿱一絲 (without 土)

⿱一絲 depicts wet silk threads hung on a rack, a vivid image of moisture.

The water radical 氵 was added to reinforce the meaning “wet”.

Later developments:

In bronze inscriptions, the semantic marker 土 was added.

絲 was simplified into 𢆶, yielding the later form 溼.

Thus, 溼 is a true pictorial-semantic construction, not phonetic.

Secondary character: 濕

濕 originally did not mean “wet”.

It referred to a river name: 濕水 (an ancient river in Shandong)

Structure: ⿰氵⿱一絲 + 日

Phonetic value: xí

Characters derived from this lineage:

隰 — marsh; wet lowland

濕 (place-sense) — damp ground

Only later did 濕 replace 溼 in general usage due to graphic convergence.

Rejection of traditional Shuowen Jiezi analysis:

《說文解字》 analyzes 濕 as:

水 (semantic)

㬎 (phonetic)

However:

㬎 never existed as an independent character.

Paleographic evidence shows the core element is ⿱一絲, not 㬎.

Similarity with 顯 is pure coincidence.

Therefore, the Shuowen analysis is now considered incorrect.

Semantic development:

- concrete wetness — soaked silk threads (溼)

- environmental dampness — wet ground, marsh (隰, 濕)

- general adjective — wet, humid (modern convergence)

Modern usage has largely collapsed 溼 and 濕 into one form, except in Taiwan.

습하다 (濕하다) — to be damp

습기 (濕氣) — moisture; humidity

습도 (濕度) — humidity level

다습 (多濕) — humid

저습 (低濕) — low humidity

Classical / geographical usage:

습지 (隰地 / 濕地) — marshland; wetland

습수 (濕水) — ancient river name

Related characters (moisture & wetland):

溼 — original “wet” character

濕 — damp place; later generalization

隰 — marsh; low wet land

潤 — moist; 润

漯 — river name (parallel usage)

Among these, 溼 is the true semantic original, while 濕 is historically geographical.

溼 (Taiwan standard), 隰