to teach (jiāo) / teaching, religion (jiào)

What 教 is made of

Where 教 comes from

教 is a child 子 under crossed guidance marks, with 攵 — a hand holding a rod — on the right. The oracle-bone classroom was stern: teaching drawn as discipline. Three millennia later the rod is gone; the character remembers.

教 in Chinese culture

教 splits by tone: jiāo is the verb (教中文, teach Chinese; 教我! teach me!), jiào the noun-world (教育 education, 教室 classroom, 佛教 Buddhism — religions are 'teachings'). Teachers' Day (教师节, Sept 10) still commands genuine reverence — 一日为师，终身为父: teacher for a day, father for a lifetime. Few cultures load 教 with as much weight.

Example

How to remember it

A child guided by a firm hand 攵 — to TEACH.

Religions in Chinese are 'teachings': 佛教 (Buddha-teaching), 道教 (Dao-teaching), 基督教 (Christ-teaching).

Same sound, different tones

Words unlocked by 教

Related characters