之

(possessive particle, literary equivalent of 的[de5]) / him / her / it

之 = 丶 + Z : Mnemonic symbol: Sooo sleepy... "zZz" (the character looks like a "Z"). James II of England (zh) fell asleep in front of the space station (Ø1). He sleeps on a big petal leaf (丶), making loud "zZz" (之) sounds.

之 character breakdown

之
- 丶
- Z

丶

zhǔ = zhu + Ø3

"dot" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 3) / see also 點|点[dian3]

This character shall be represented by a petal (丶) when appearing in other characters.

Julian Giant Squid (zhu) is napping in the space station's living room (Ø3) and hugging a petal (丶).

Character component without intrinsic meaning

This is just to remind you that 之 looks like Z.

Characters with 之 as component

乏

fá = f + a2

short of / tired

乏 = 丿 + 之 : A futon. Frankenstein's monster just entered the ashram and finds a futon. Tired as he his, he immediately goes to bed, covers himself with a big banana peel and makes loud zZz sounds as he sleeps.

芝

zhi̅ = zh + Ø1

Zoysia pungens