Zi:先

先 [xiān] first; prior; 先​生 xiānsheng Mr.; ​祖先 zǔxiān ancestor; (HDZ:) ​前​进; … [xiǎn] (HDC:) 先/​洗​馬

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

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The Shuōwén Seal form of 先 xiān ‘advance’ (​前​進) combines ​之(​𡳿​㞢) zhī ‘go out/forth’ (​出, ​往) over ​儿 rén ‘person’ (​人).
    Older graphs associated with 先 are said to have ​止 zhǐ ‘foot’ above (​止/​之 are closely related), for the meaning ‘advance’ (as in old ​前 graphs); following in the footsteps of those who went first/before (​祖先), or taking the lead (​占先); thus, 先 has the same components as ​企 (see below).
    Compare: ​洗 xiǎn ‘wash the feet’, in which 先 xiān (phonosemantic).
    Note: In the modern form 先 the top part ​⺧ is a variant of ​之 (or ​止), which happens to look like ​牛 niú ‘ox’, in ​告(​𠰛) gào.
    Compare: ​前(​歬) qián ‘before’, in which the top is ​止 ‘foot’; ​企 qǐ ‘stand on tip-toe; anticipate’; ​𤰫(​𨛝​邦) bāng; ​光(​灮) guāng.
    Compare: ​选/​選(​𨕖) xuǎn ‘dispatch/dispense; select’; in the simple form ​选, 先 stands for the full-form component ​巽(​巺​㢲).
    HDZ: 先 : xiān : (​甲) ​从​止/​之, ​足… cf. ​企: ​举​踵; ​前​进; ​时​间​或​次​序​在​前​的; ​首​要​的​事​情; ​古​时​的, ​古​代​的; ​称​呼​已​去​世​的​尊​长; ​祖先; (​简​称) 先​生; 先​时, ​原先; (​围​棋) 先​手; (​姓); ​引​导, ​倡​导; ​事​情​或​行​为​发​生​在​前; ​占先, ​胜; ​事先​联​系​或​介​绍; (​古) ​弟​媳​对​嫂​嫂​的​称​呼; (​副​词) ​本​来, ​已​经
►references: Guǎngyùn:132.01,406.29; Wieger:79b; Karlgren:AD797,GSR478a; Hànyǔ Dà Zìdiǎn:1.267.2; Mathews:2702; Kāngxī Zìdiǎn:124.05; Bǐshùn Guīfàn:028.1.10; Wáng(1993):30; EDOC:1
►components: ​⺧​儿​
►Cantonese: sin\
►stroke 先 (... strokes)   
►list characters containing 先 as a component
►list words containing 先 (most common words first)
Unicode: U+5148
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