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by jaredmck 5290 days ago
Why are the symbols for "ke" different depending on the order in which the syllables appear?
2 comments
sapphirecat 5290 days ago
Not sure if serious, but consider English "to", "too", and "two".

Disclaimer/explanation: I actually studied Japanese, but I'm assuming the same principle applies. If so, the symbols would be different because of the differing meanings, and the pronunciation is coincidental.

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xiaomai 5290 days ago
可 means "able to" (so 可口 could be sort of literally translated as "mouth-able"), whereas 渴 actually means thirsty ("mouth thirsty").
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