甓

A phono-semantic compound composed of:

瓦 (tile; pottery; baked clay) — semantic component, indicates fired clay materials used in construction;

辟 (ruler; to open; to avoid) — phonetic component, supplies the sound "byeok" and functions purely phonetically here.

The character thus denotes a fired clay block used in building, specifically a brick rather than roofing tile.

甓 is not used in everyday Korean, where 벽돌 is written in Hangul.

벽甓 — bricks; brickwork

파벽 (破甓) — broken bricks; rubble

甓 refers to solid baked bricks, especially those used in walls, pavements, and foundations.

It is more technical and literary than the everyday word 磚, and often appears in classical or descriptive contexts.

甓 emphasizes material substance and construction, not metaphor.

Often contrasted with:

瓦 — tiles (especially roofing)

石 — stone

土 — earth (raw material)

In classical prose, references to 甓 often evoke urban construction, fortifications, or ruins.

Classical-style usage:

甓瓦滿地 — “Bricks and tiles covered the ground”

城毁而甓存 — “The city fell, yet the bricks remained”