稀

A phono-semantic compound composed of:

禾 — semantic component meaning “grain; rice plant”;

希 — phonetic component indicating the sound (희 / xī).

The character originally described grain plants growing sparsely, which led to the meaning rare or thinly scattered.

Semantic development:

- sparse growth of plants;

- rare or uncommon;

- thin, diluted, or low density.

In many modern compounds, the character 希 is more commonly used than 稀.

희소 (希少) — rarity; scarce

희박 (希薄) — thin; rarefied; weak (density or concentration)

희토류 (希土類) — rare-earth elements

Related characters:

希 — rare; hope

少 — few; little

薄 — thin; weak

珍 — rare; precious

In Japanese, 稀 is listed as a name-use character (人名用漢字).