Why Words And Cí 詞 （辭） Are Not The Same (Phonographs vs. Logographs):
Phonetic Languages (Latin, Sanskrit/Brahmi, most modern languages) :
letters
= phonetic symbols
(sounds)
—→ words = have meaning, represent ideas
拼音文字
聲音符號
有意義，表示觀念
例子 Examples : b, ö, å, ß, ð,
ñ, Ω, и, ㄓ,
ガ
例子 Examples : boy, créée
Logographic Languages (Chinese, Japanese, Korean) :
字 characters = logographic / ideographic
glyphs —→ 詞 （辭） = more specific / combined ideas
表意文字 /
象形文字
特定意思 / 組合觀念
例子 Examples : 象，江 /
日，月
例子 Examples : 電話，玄學
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* Phonetic symbols represent sounds, and logographs represent ideas
Thus, letters can be combined in nonsensical combinations (“zysaqrt”),
but logographs intrinsically always have meaning at least on an individual level.
However, logographs can represent a wide variety of ideas,
and especially when combined with the widespread use of homonyms,
determining the meaning of a graph can become extremely difficult.
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Ancient Languages which seem to have developed from Logographic to Phonetic:
Sumerian Cuneiform 蘇美的楔形文字
Egyptian Hieroglyphics 埃及的象形文字
Mayan Hieroglyphics 馬雅的象形文字