忄
shù xīn páng
Why "busy" and "afraid" both come out of the chest
The picture A single heart stood upright against the left side of the character. 忄 is something happening inside the chest, 扌 is something the hand does outside.
Where the picture shows up in 忄
-
the chest packed full
我今天特别忙。
wǒ jīntiān tèbié máng
I'm especially busy today.
Jobs crowding into the chest all at once until there is no room left
-
the chest shrinking
我有点怕打针。
wǒ yǒudiǎn pà dǎ zhēn
I'm a little afraid of injections.
At the sight of the needle the chest pulls in and the body steps half back
-
weather over the chest
老板今天心情不好。
lǎobǎn jīntiān xīnqíng bù hǎo
The boss is in a bad mood today.
A cloud settling over the chest until the face darkens too
-
the chest running ahead
你快一点,车要开了。
nǐ kuài yìdiǎn, chē yào kāi le
Hurry up, the bus is about to leave.
The heart sprinting out in front of the body and dragging the feet after it
-
a track worn into the chest
这个工作我已经习惯了。
zhège gōngzuò wǒ yǐjīng xíguàn le
I'm used to this job by now.
The same spot trodden over and over until a footpath shows in the chest
All of it in one picture
忄 is one heart stood on end beside a character. Pack the chest full of jobs and it means busy; shrink it and it means afraid. Sit a cloud on top of it and it means mood; let it run out ahead of the body and it means hurry. Walk the same path across it often enough to wear a track, and it means being used to something.