Origin

The character 励 combines a sound hint on the left that indicates its pronunciation with the symbol for "power" or "strength" on the right. The left side, made up of strokes that suggest a cliff or slope, provides a rough phonetic clue. The right component, 力, meaning strength or effort, carries the core sense of the character—when you have the power or force to push yourself forward, you are being diligent or encouraged. Together, the shape evolved to represent the idea of exerting one's strength and energy, which is why it means to encourage or inspire someone to be diligent.

AI-generated (claude-haiku-4-5), not yet reviewed. Formation type (automated guess): Phono-semantic (meaning + sound hint).