聚
assemble
Readings
On'yomi
- シュウ
- シュ
Kun'yomi
- あつ.まる
Meaning
聚 centers on bringing separate things together into one group: assembling, gathering, or collecting.
Most common words using 聚
- 倭名類聚鈔わみょうるいじゅしょう
Wamyōruijushō (famous Heian-period Japanese dictionary)
- 聚散しゅうさん
collection and distribution
- 聚斂しゅうれん
(levying of a) heavy taxation
- 聚楽じゅらく
grey wall covering material (gray)
- 類聚るいじゅう
collection of similar objects; classification by similarity
- 類聚名義抄るいじゅうみょうぎしょう
Ruijū Myōgishō (Japanese-Chinese character dictionary from the late Heian Period)
Study
Etymology
聚 combines 取 (take) and 乑 (a variant of 众, meaning many people), suggesting taking many people together into one place. The exact historical development is uncertain, but the component combination fits the meaning of assembling.
Meaning mnemonic
The top 取 means 'take', and the bottom 乑 looks like a crowd of people. Imagine taking a crowd and assembling them in one spot.
Reading mnemonic
For シュウ, picture a shoe factory where workers assemble shoes: shoe -> シュウ, and the workers gather together to build them.