1) Chinese character 
In classical Chinese philology, shengxun (聲訓 `voice explanation`) or yinxun (音訓 `sound explanation`) is the practice of explaining a character by using a homophone or near-homophone. The practice is ancient, and can be seen in pre-Qin texts. Xu Shen, author of the monumental Shuowen Jiezi, employed shengxun. For example, when Xu explai...