女
nǚ
A seated figure with folded arms — that is 女
The picture The outline of someone kneeling with both arms folded in front, frozen into a character. 女 tags the female side of a word; 男 tags the side working the field.
Where the picture shows up in 女
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the daughter in the house
我女儿今年上小学。
wǒ nǚ'ér jīnnián shàng xiǎoxué
My daughter starts primary school this year.
A mother holding a small hand at the school gate, that child marked as the daughter
女儿 is daughter, 儿子 is son — one character apart.
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how you call her over
女士，这边请。
nǚshì, zhèbiān qǐng
This way, ma'am.
A shop assistant's open hand guiding a woman customer inside
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one half of the group
我们班女生比较多。
wǒmen bān nǚshēng bǐjiào duō
Our class has more girls than boys.
Desks counted in two columns, one column clearly longer
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the line that splits everyone
这家店男女老少都喜欢。
zhè jiā diàn nán nǚ lǎo shào dōu xǐhuan
Men, women, old, young — everyone likes this shop.
Men, women, grandparents and kids all filing in through one shop door
男女老少 works as a single phrase: absolutely everybody.
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the tag on a partner
他带女朋友来吃饭。
tā dài nǚpéngyou lái chīfàn
He brought his girlfriend along for dinner.
Two people walking into a restaurant side by side, one of them carrying the 女 tag
All of it in one picture
女 is the outline of a person seated with folded arms. Put that outline inside a house and you get a daughter; put it at a shop door and it becomes how you address a customer; put it in a classroom and it marks one half of the students. Stand it next to 男 and the two split all people into two rows; stand it before friend and it names a partner. So when 女 shows up, don't memorize a meaning — read it as a tag: this word leans female.