Zi:是

From Wenlin Dictionaries

[shì] to be, is/are; right/proper/true; 是​ right and wrong; 是​ whether or not; affirm/approve; (HDZ:) ​, ​; … [shí] ​ [] ​

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

¹shì* {A} v.be〈environment:〉 wr. praise; justifyb.f. matter; affairguó∼ 国∼ national affairspr. this; alls.v. right; trueadv. certainly; for sureTiānqì ∼ rè. 天气∼热。 It sure is hot.cons. A ∼ A it's A all right, but ...Hǎo ∼ hǎo, kěshì wǒ bù xǐhuan. 好∼好, 可是我不喜欢。 It's good all right, but I don't like it.

662f.png
The character 是 (9 strokes) was formerly wr. ​, with ​ below instead of ​𤴓 (as in ​/​𡧡).
    Note: ​𤴓/​ variation in 是/​ reflects an old/obscure distinction: the old form ​ was used for ​(​) Xià; the component ​ (combining form of ​) is also seen in other modern forms (​, ​, ​, ​, ​, ​).
    The Shuōwén Seal form of 是(​) shì ‘right/straight/true’ (是​) is said to combine ​ rì ‘sun’ (phonosemantic), and ​𤴓/​ zhèng ‘right/correct’: everything under heaven pales in comparison with the sun, fountain of light, illuminating darkness, revealing the truth; formerly also wr. ​𣆞, with ​(​𧾸) old wr. of ​, in which ​𠄞(​) shàng ‘above’, as in ​ shì ‘heavens’.
    Note: 是(​) shì, and ​ rì ‘sun/day’ are phonologically similar in OC, though imperfect rhymes; OC 是 ‘this’ and ​ ‘time’ are closer, distinguished only by the medial vowel (GSR); the semantic role of ​ rì ‘sun/day’ in all of these compounds is prominent, cf. (SW:) 是(​): …​ ‘under heaven, nothing is more true than sun/light’ (DYC); such a statement reflects associations with ​/​(​) yáng (⚊); cf. ​, in which the central line ⚊ divides ​ distinguishing light/being from dark/nothing.
    Note: In the SW gloss ​(​𥄂) zhí ‘(see/know the) straight/true’ is paronomastic; cf. 是(​) shì ← MC /ʑieʔ/; ​(​𥄂) zhí ← MC /ɖjik/ (SBGY).
    Compare: ​𬤊/​ shì ‘(represent/speak/assert) truth’; ​ shì ‘observe carefully’; ​ zhī ‘stable/quiet/peaceful’, formerly also wr. ​.
    An old bronze form associated with 是 (HDZ) seems to put ​ zǎo ‘early’ (or ​ dàn ‘dawn’), over ​ zhǐ ‘foot/step/stop/beat’ (phonosemantic): 是 ‘be/is’, a ​ ‘step/beat’ of ​/​/​ ‘time’.
    Compare: ​/​(​) shí ‘time’, in which ​(​𡳿) zhī, rather than ​ zhǐ; ​/​ are very close in MC/OC.
    Compare: ​/​ shí ‘true/real (valuables)’; ​/​ shì ‘look/watch’.
    “[是] ​, ​, ​。What was ​ controlled at ​ sun's light... truthfulness, reality, existence” —Wieger.
    HDZ: 是 : shì : (SW: ​) ​, ​; ​; ​, ​ (ant. ​) (​是​, ​是, 是​); ​, ​是​; ​: (​; ​ (​是​, ​是​, ​宿是​); ​, ​ (​是​, ​是​; ​是​, ​是​; ​是​, ​是​; ​是​, ​是​, ​)); ​, ​; (​) (​, ​; ​ (​是​, ​是​, ​是​)); (​) ​ (…); ​是, ​; (​是​是​, …); ​, ​ (​是​); ​; (​) (​, ​, ​便; ​); (​) (​是; ​; ​, ​); ​: ​; ​/​: ​, ​; ​: ​, ​; ​ (shí): (​, ​; ​, ​) (cf. ​); ​: ​; (​) • tí : ​
    HDC: 是​ : ​, ​
    HDC: ​ : ​, ​; ​; ​使
►references: Guǎngyùn:241.03; Wieger:112i; Karlgren:AD890,GSR866a; Wáng(1993):194; Hànyǔ Dà Zìdiǎn:2.1497.5; Mathews:5794; Kāngxī Zìdiǎn:493.26; Bǐshùn Guīfàn:113.1.07; EDOC:1
►components:𤴓
►Cantonese: sih-
►stroke 是 (... strokes)   
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Unicode: U+662F
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