酉 (yǒu): the tenth Earthly Branch

Meanings

1 the tenth Earthly Branch
2 the Rooster (zodiac)
3 5–7 p.m. (in the traditional time system)
4 (archaic) wine vessel

Characters

酉

yǒu

wine jar; tenth Earthly Branch

Examples

酉时是下午五点到七点。

Yǒu shí shì xiàwǔ wǔdiǎn dào qīdiǎn.

The Hour of the Rooster is from 5 to 7 p.m.

他属鸡，生于酉年。

Tā shǔjī, shēngyú yǒu nián.

He is a Rooster, born in a 酉 year.

Tips

history

Originally a pictograph of a wine jar with the contents inside — 酉 is the prototype of 酒 (jiǔ, alcohol), which simply added the water radical. It was later borrowed to write the tenth of the twelve Earthly Branches, paired with the Rooster in the zodiac and with 5–7 p.m. in the traditional twelve-hour clock.

memory

Spotting 酉 on either side of a character is a near-guarantee of fermentation or alcohol semantics: 酒 (alcohol), 醉 (drunk), 醒 (sober up / wake), 酸 (sour), 酱 (sauce), 醋 (vinegar), 酪 (cheese), 酬 (toast/reward).

Components

pictograph

酉 yǒu

wine vessel (Kangxi #164)

Pictograph of a narrow-necked wine jar — rim, body, and dregs settled inside the belly. As the indexing radical it heads everything wine-or-ferment related: 酒 (wine), 酸 (sour), 醉 (drunk), 醋 (vinegar). Also names the tenth Earthly Branch and the zodiac Rooster, the late-afternoon hour when farmers traditionally tipped a cup.

Radical

Wine Jar Kangxi #164

The wine-jar radical. A pictograph of an ancient sealed wine vessel, prototype of 酒. Highly productive in fermentation, alcohol, and tangy-flavor vocabulary: 酒, 醉, 醒, 酸, 醋, 酱, 酪, 酬, 酵, 酶. Also borrowed for the tenth Earthly Branch (Rooster, 5–7 p.m.). One of the most reliable semantic cues in the language.