征

journey / trip / expedition / to go on long campaign / to attack

to invite / to recruit / to levy (taxes) / to draft (troops) / phenomenon / symptom / characteristic sign (used as proof) / evidence

征 = 彳 + 正 : James II of England (zh) recruited (征) the stick figure (正) to join him on an expedition (征). Legend has it that an ancient civilization left their black sneakers (彳) in front of the engine ((e)ng1). After they dug up most of the ground they finally find the sneakers.

征 character breakdown

征
- 彳
  - 丿
  - 亻
    - 丨
    - 丿
- 正
  - 一
  - 止
    - 一
    - 上
      - 一
      - 丨
      - 二
        
        一
      - ⺊
        
        一
        
        丨
      - 丄
        
        一
        
        丨
    - 丨
    - ⺊
      - 一
      - 丨
    - 丄
      - 一
      - 丨

彳

chì = ch + Ø4

step with the left foot (Kangxi radical 60) / see also 彳亍[chi4 chu4]

彳 = 丿 + 亻 : Mnemonic symbol for the step with the left foot: a black sneaker, because black sneakers are popular at least with the leftists I met.

Rosa Luxemburg (亻) just finished her banana (丿) and throws the peel over her shoulder in the space station's bathroom (Ø4). Charlie Chaplin (彳), wearing a black sneaker on his left foot, manages to step on the banana peel with his left foot and fall over even in zero gravity.

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.

Characters with 征 as component

惩

懲

chéng = ch + (e)ng2

to punish / to reprimand / to warn

惩 = 征 + 心 : Charlie Chaplin (ch) went on an expedition (征) to find his heart (心) in the engine's kitchen ((e)ng2), but during his expedition he dug up the whole ground and ruined everything, so he will be punished (惩) very severely.