只
=
八
+
口
:
Mnemonic symbol: this character looks like something (a head?) on two legs. I'll just represent it by a cuttlefish (只). James II of England (zh) has been in the space station (Ø3) as the only (只) one for too long and went mad. He thinks he's holding a mandarin (口), but he's just about to bite into merely (只) an eight ball (八). On the top of his head is a cuttlefish (只) he mistook for a hat.
important / vital / to want / to ask for / will / going to (as future auxiliary) / may / must / (used in a comparison) must be / probably / if
要
=
女
+
覀
:
Bessie Coleman shows Maud Younger how to use a knuckle duster in the aorta's bathroom. She says it's very important and that Maud will have to get one herself.
If you work at it hard enough, you can grind an iron bar into a needle. / cf idiom 磨杵成針|磨杵成针, to grind an iron bar down to a fine needle (idiom); fig. to persevere in a difficult task / to study diligently