人不可貌相

人

rén

不

bù

可

kě

貌

mào

相

xiàng

you can't judge a person by appearance (idiom) / you can't judge a book by its cover / often in combination 人不可貌相，海水不可斗量[ren2 bu4 ke3 mao4 xiang4 , hai3 shui3 bu4 ke3 dou3 liang2]

Characters and words in 人不可貌相

人

rén = r + (e)n2

person; people / CL:個|个[ge4],位[wei4]

人 = 丿 + ㇏ : Mnemonic symbol: Neanderthal Man (人). Robinson Crusoe (r-) is looking for snacks in the encampment's kitchen (-en2) when he suddenly spots Neanderthal Man (人). Neanderthal Man offers him a banana (丿), but Robinson Crusoe doesn't trust the present and pokes it with a finger (㇏).

不

bù = bu + Ø4

no; not so / (bound form) not; un-

不 = 丆 + 卜 : Bruno Bear (bu) is setting up a wind wheel (丆) with a voodoo staff (卜) in the space station's bathroom (Ø4). He also puts a "forbidden" sign (mnemonic symbol for 不) on it, to make clear that it may not (不) be stopped.

不

bù

可

kě

cannot / should not / must not

不

bù

可

kě

cannot; should not; must not

可

kě = k + e3

can / may / able to / to approve / to permit / to suit / (particle used for emphasis) certainly / very

可 = 丁 + 口 : Karl Marx (k) is challenging his abilities (可) in the elevator's living room (e3). He tries to force a nail (丁) into a mandarin (口), just by using his head. On top of that he tries to do so one thousand times, in order to create a bed of nails (mnemonic symbol for 可).

可 = 丁 + 口 : Alternative mnemonic symbol: kebab, from the pronunciation "ke". Karl Marx (k) is preparing a kebab (mnemonic symbol for 可) in the elevator's living room (e3). He also skewers mandarins (口) on the long steel nails (丁) and will only allow (可) his guests to eat the rest of the kebab if they eat their mandarins first.

可

kè = k + e4

used in 可汗[ke4 han2]

貌

mào = m + ao4

appearance

貌 = 豸 + 白 + 儿 : Sun Wukong (儿) has transformed into a bug (豸) overnight and wakes up in the aorta's bathroom (ao4). Suddenly Mahatma Gandhi (m) enters and as he sees this weird appearance (貌) he quickly walks towards it. Sun Wukong feels very helpless and is very afraid, so he waves with a white flag (白). Fortunately Mahatma Gandhi is very polite (貌) and asks whether he can do anything for the bug.

貌

mào

相

xiàng

appearance (esp. superficial) / looks / to judge a person by appearances

相

xia̅ng = xi + ang1

each other / one another / mutually / fret on the neck of a pipa 琵琶[pi2 pa5] (a fret on the soundboard is called a 品[pin3])

相

xiàng = xi + ang4

appearance / portrait / picture / government minister / (physics) phase / (literary) to appraise (esp. by scrutinizing physical features) / to read sb's fortune (by physiognomy, palmistry etc)

相 = 木 + 目 : I take "eye" and "tree" as resembling an ent, an alive tree. Marie Curie portrays an ent in the anglepod's bathroom. Unfortunately she's really bad at painting, and her portrait resembles more a Christmas tree. The Eye of Providence enters and, just from the shape of the Christmas Tree, instantly recognizes its own portrait. The Eye of Providence asks Marie Curie how much she wants to have for the painting, but Marie Curie just wonders if the Eye of Providence is made from Radium, because it radiates so much.