Zi:林

林 [lín] (​森林 sēnlín) forest; (​姓); ​桂林 Guìlín; (HDZ:) ​成​片​的​竹/​木 …; (​姓)

One monosyllabic entry in The ABC Chinese-English Comprehensive Dictionary (namespace Ci):

►¹lín* ​林 {E} b.f. ①forest; woods; grove ►shùlín 树林 ②forestry ►¹línyè 林业 ③circle; group ④collection of literary works ⑤many; numerous; a great body of ►¹línlì 林立 ◆n. Surname

The Shuōwén Seal form of 林 lín ‘forest/grove (on flat ground)’ doubles ​木 mù ‘tree’; two (or more) trees, side-by-side.
    Compare: ​森 sēn ‘dense valley/hill/mountain forest’ (​森林 sēnlín ‘forest’).
    Note: As one commentary explains, although SW says the Seal form has two trees, it does not say it has only two trees (two trees do not a forest make); rather, the two trees represent many trees of a given kind standing one after another, side by side, with overlapping branches, forming a continuous natural stand of trees or bamboo, or a planted grove (​王​筠: ​取​木​与​木​连​属​不​绝​之​意).
    Note: In GFC the first definition of 林 lín is “​连​成​一​片​的​树​木​或​竹​子 (​植​树​造林, ​竹林, ​森林)”; in that definition, ​片 piàn (m.w.) ‘stretches of land/scenery’ (trees/bamboo standing together to form a grove).
    Compare: ​棼 fén ‘(tower/mansion with) sharp/high ridge/roof beams/peak’; ​辳(​曟).
    Compare: ​焚 fén ‘burn/clear a forest/field’; ​彬 bīn ‘beautiful form and real substance’.
    HDZ: 林 : lín : ​成​片​的​竹/​木 (​平林, ​森林, ​竹林, ​防​风林); 林​业; ​人​或​事​物​的​会​聚, ​汇​集​处 (​艺林); ​野​外; ​众​盛​貌; ​君; (​姓)
►references: Guǎngyùn:217.14; Lǐ(1992):197; Karlgren:AD555,GSR655a; Hànyǔ Dà Zìdiǎn:2.1164.7; Lindqvist:238,349; Mathews:4022; Kāngxī Zìdiǎn:516.05; Bǐshùn Guīfàn:072.1.07; EDOC:1
►components: ​​木​木
►Cantonese: lahm\
►stroke 林 (... strokes)   
►list characters containing 林 as a component
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Unicode: U+6797
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