繇 (yóu): cause; reason (variant of 由)

Meanings

这个读音表示原因或途径，跟由相同。

Yóu

This reading means cause or means, the same as the common character 由.

古文里繇假借为由。

Gǔwén lǐ yóu

In classical texts it is borrowed for the word meaning by way of.

usage

Read yóu, 繇 is a classical loan for 由, meaning cause, reason, or means. It is purely a literary usage, not seen in modern Chinese.

radical

糸 sī

silk; thread

糸 is the silk radical at the bottom. The original sense was following or attendant threads, later borrowed for labor service and song.

phonetic

䍃 yáo

pottery jar

䍃 supplies the sound yáo, the same phonetic seen in 谣 and 摇. It carries the reading, not the meaning.

繇 yóu