TSUMUGU · TOCFL B2 (est.) · 字
黎
黎 ＝ 黍 ＋ 利
ㄌㄧˊ · lí
noun/adj — the multitude (黎民); dark; just before dawn (黎明)
字源 FORM — what the parts do
黍義millet — the sticky grain
Tlì → lí — same sound, tone lifts
The sticky-millet sign (黍) carries the meaning and 利 lì, written short across the top, carries the sound. The tone lifts from lì to lí. The word turns dark — the deep colour of the swarming crowd — giving 黎民, the common people, and 黎明, the dark just before dawn.
意 · Meanings
(本義)黎黑— dark, black
→黎民、黎庶— the common people, the multitude常用
⇒黎明— dawn — the dark just before light
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension