Character Of The Day

Lì. This character is one of the more popular ones for tattooing on your body if you're a pro athlete or a poseur (check this out). I don't think it will ever be beaten by the barbed wire around the bicep, though. Anyway, let's take a look at it. Originally, this character was a pictograph of a tendon and can mean power, force, ability, or strength. It's part of a lot of words, so let's take a look at some of them.

力不从心 - lìbùcóngxīn means unable to do as much as one would like to (i think this is 成语?)
力量 - lìliang and
力气 - lìqi both mean physical strength
潜力 - qiánlì means latent ability or potential
努力 - nǔlì means diligent or to work hard
苦力 - kǔlì means hard work (the English word "coolie" is derived from this word)
活力 - huólì means vitality
力学 - lìxué means mechanics (the field of study)

So, there you have it. There's plenty more of these, so look this character up in your dictionary or on www.zhongwen.com for more ways that it's used. If you're going to get this tattooed on your body, get the pictograph done on your Achilles. That would be interesting. Later.