反正

anyway / in any case / to come over from the enemy's side

Characters and words in 反正

fǎn = f + an3

contrary / in reverse / inside out or upside down / to reverse / to return / to oppose / opposite / against / anti- / to rebel / to use analogy / instead / abbr. for 反切[fan3 qie4] phonetic system

反 = ⺁ + 又 : A protester (mnemonic symbol for 反) makes a racket in the anthill's living room (an3). He's got a huge banana tree (⺁) with him and wants to protest against the exploitation of banana farm workers. Frankenstein's Monster (f) is annoyed by him and punches him with a boxing glove (又).

正

zhe̅ng = zh + (e)ng1

first month of the lunar year

正

zhèng = zh + (e)ng4

straight / upright / proper / main / principal / to correct / to rectify / exactly / just (at that time) / right (in that place) / (math.) positive

正 = 一 + 止 : Mnemonic symbol: a stick-figure with straight lines. James II of England (zh) really has to use the engine's bathroom ((e)ng4), but there's a stick-figure (正) blocking the stalls with a barrier (止). The stick-figure measures with a flute (一) whether James is tall enough to go. James stands very straight (正) to make himself as tall as possible.