TSUMUGU · TOCFL 3 (est.) · 詞
兄弟
ㄒㄩㄥ ㄉㄧˋ · xiōngdì
noun — brothers; brother (extended: close male companions)
字源 FORM — what the parts do
兄older brother (兄長的兄)xiōng口 (mouth) on top of 儿 (person/legs) — the elder who speaks first, whose voice rises above
弟younger brother (弟弟的弟)dìa cord wound in sequence around a peg — the one who follows in order; second in line
兄弟，兄長的兄，弟弟的弟。
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
口（兄：口）在上先開——長；弓（弟）纏繩依序排——幼；一先一後，兄弟。
Mouth on top (兄: 口 above 儿 — the elder who calls first); cord wound in sequence (弟: a peg wrapped in order — the one who follows). Elder calls; younger falls in. That pair is 兄弟.
字源記憶法
關 · Related
姐妹jiěmèisisters — the parallel pairdìxiōngbrothers (reversed order, more colloquial) — same pair, different register