訊

Phono-semantic compound consisting of:

言 (말씀 언) — semantic component, indicating speech or words.

卂 (빨리날 신) — phonetic component, giving the sound xùn / sin and the sense of quick motion or dispatch.

Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字) defines:

「訊，問也。从言卂聲。」

“訊 means to ask or inquire; composed of 言 (‘speech’) and the phonetic 卂 (‘swift’).”

The earliest forms in the Small Seal Script depict words issuing rapidly, emphasizing the act of quick questioning or transmission of speech.

Thus, the original sense combined verbal communication (言) with swiftness (卂) — suggesting either urgent questioning or the rapid delivery of information.

訊 (신) — inquiry; questioning; news

訊問 (신문) — interrogation; to question formally

訊斷 (신단) — judgment after interrogation

訊息 (신식) — information; news; tidings

訊問調書 (신문조서) — record of interrogation

通訊 (통신) — communication; telecommunication; news transmission

通訊社 (통신사) — news agency

情報通信 (정보통신) — information and communication technology

質訊 (질신) — inquiry and response

咨訊 (자신) — consultation; inquiry report

詢訊 (순신) — to ask and consult repeatedly (classical)

In literary usage, 訊 often carries both the sense of inquiring (asking for truth) and reporting (conveying truth).

This duality — “to ask” and “to tell” — defines its linguistic and philosophical value.

The Kangxi Dictionary (康熙字典) glosses:

「訊，問也。又音信也。」

“訊 means to inquire; it also denotes message or correspondence.”

Thus, 訊 historically bridged two domains:

Judicial or administrative inquiry — as in official questioning (訊問, interrogation).

Informational communication — as in messages and news (音訊, tidings).

In legal documents of the Han and Tang dynasties, 訊 primarily referred to formal interrogation of suspects or witnesses.

For example, Han Shu (漢書·刑法志):

「訊獄必審，毋濫毋枉。」

“When questioning in trials, be thorough — neither excessive nor unjust.”

In contrast, in later classical prose, the word broadened to mean letters, reports, or messages — synonymous with 信 (to believe, to correspond).

Hence idioms like:

無音無訊 (무음무신) — “no sound, no word” (no news at all).

音訊兩絕 (음신양절) — “both sound and message are cut off.”

In modern Chinese and Korean, 訊 survives mainly in compounds such as 통신(通信) and 신문(訊問), where it retains both ancient senses — communication and interrogation.

訊 originated as a character uniting speech (言) and speed (卂) — “words sent swiftly,” expressing the dual act of asking and conveying.

It came to signify both inquiry and information, from the judge’s questioning to the messenger’s report.

Across the centuries, 訊 has stood for the vital current of communication — the human search for knowledge and the swift passing of words.