蔘

by extension, the root of certain medicinal plants

Phono-semantic compound:

艸 (초, grass/plant radical) – semantic component, indicating plant/herb.

參 (참, participate; also used for “ginseng”) – phonetic component.

Originally referred specifically to ginseng; later extended to wild or cultivated varieties.

人蔘 (인삼) — ginseng (Panax ginseng)

山蔘 (산삼) — wild ginseng

高麗蔘 (고려삼) — Korean ginseng

紅蔘 (홍삼) — red ginseng

蔘藥 (삼약) — ginseng medicine

In China and Japan, 參 is often used interchangeably with 蔘, so 蔘 is less common.

葠, 蓡 (registered as variants of 参 in the “Table of General Standard Chinese Characters” (通用規範漢字表)).