聲

Core sense: sound, voice, or noise. This includes acoustic and physical manifestations ranging from natural noises (e.g., wind) to human shouts. When applied to speech, it often denotes the manner of delivery—such as volume, tone, or affect. It also extends metaphorically to reputation or fame (名聲), referring to how a person is "heard" or echoed within a community.

Primarily used as a noun (sound, voice). Occasionally functions as a verb meaning "to make a sound," "to voice," or "to protest."

In early texts, 聲 is often distinguished from 音: 聲 refers to the raw acoustic event, physical vibration, or outward manifestation of a voice (the fact that something is audible), whereas 音 refers to structured sound, melody, tone, or semantic content (the meaning or music conveyed). Additionally, 聲 focuses on the sonic quality of communication, as opposed to 言 or 話, which focus on linguistic content.

Variant form: 声 (U+58F0).

Etymologically rooted in the act of striking a stone chime (磬) with a striker (殳), implying an intentional physical production of sound. In older scripts, variations may occur in the rendering of the 殳 component.