丢三落四 (diūsānlàsì) · forgetful

丢 diū · to lose

What 丢 is made of

• 王wáng — king
  • 一 — horizontal stroke
  • 土tǔ — earth
    • 十 — ten
    • 一 — horizontal stroke
• 厶sī — private

三 sān · three

What 三 is made of

• 一 — horizontal stroke
• 二 — two strokes
  • 一 — horizontal stroke
  • 一 — horizontal stroke

Origin hint: Three parallel lines; compare 一 (one) and 二 (two) (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)

落 luò · to fall

What 落 is made of

• 艹cǎo — grass
• 洛luò — a river in the Shanxi province
  • 氵shuǐ — water
  • 各gè — each
    • 夂zhǐ — to go
    • 口kǒu — mouth

Origin hint: 艹 gives the meaning, 洛 gives the sound. (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)

四 sì · four

What 四 is made of

• 囗wéi — enclosure
  • 冂 — frame
    • 丨 — vertical stroke
  • 一 — horizontal stroke
• 儿ér — child
  • 丿 — falling stroke
  • 乚 — hook stroke

Origin hint: A child 儿 in a room with four walls 囗 (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)