口 （kǒu；mouth）

口 is a pictograph. The ancient form of 口 depicts a person’s month. Therefore, 口 is also used as measure word for person as 三口 (sān kǒu; a family with three people). The other meaning of口 is gateway such as in the words 出口 （chū kǒu；exit）and 入口 （rù kǒu； entrance）。 As a radical, it usually appears on the left side of a compound. Characters with 口 often have meanings related to the actions of the mouth – verbalizing and consuming. This is exemplified in the characters 吃 （chī; to eat）, 喝 （hē；to drink）, 叫 （jiào；to call）, 告 （gào; to tell）, and 问 （wèn; to ask）.