It takes all sorts

種：只問耕耘

Autumn rain poured down on 900 rural poor as they desperately prayed for it to stop. Escorted by two military officers， they were expected to arrive at Yuyang （northeast of present day Beijing） to serve as guards for the frontier of the Qin Empire （221 BCE – 206 BCE）. Roads were flooded and they had lost all hope of making it on time. The punishment for tardiness was death， not an uncommon sentence under the rule of their ferocious emperor who moved nearly 15 percent of the empires entire population to build the Great Wall， a luxury palace， and a grand mausoleum. Just as their bleak future began to set in， Chen Sheng （陳勝）， a minor leader of the group， started to preach to his peers： “王侯將相，寧有種乎！” meaning， “Kings， lords， generals， and ministers， its not the noble breed that made them！” Such a statement was shocking， but it worked. This group of poor peasants became rebels and Chen became Chinas own Spartacus. Though ultimately defeated， Chens famous slogan rang across the country， inspiring thousands upon thousands of repressed to join the rebellion， which weakened the rule of the Qin that would crumble three years later.

This historical tale leads us to our character of the day， 種， which has several pronunciations and meanings. When pronounced zh6ng， as in the tale， it means “breed， seed， or species”; when its pronounced zh7ng， it means “to plant， sow”. On the left side， the 禾?（h9， standing grain， especially rice） represents its relationship to plants. The right radical 中?（zh4ng） was in its traditional form 重?（zh7ng） but has since been simplified; In both case： it represents the characters pronunciation.

The original meaning of 種?（zh7ng） is “to sow， grow， plant， and cultivate”： 種花?（zh7nghu`， to plant flowers）; 種菜?（zh7ngc3i， to plant vegetables）; 種田?（zh7ngti1n， to cultivate the field）. The next time you plant something， heres some musing on karma for your garden： 種瓜得瓜，種豆得豆?（zh7ng gu` d9 gu`， zh7ng d7u d9 d7u. Plant melons， you get melons; sow beans， you get beans; as you sow， so will you reap）.

Sometimes， the return can be long-term， as in the idiom 前人種樹，后人乘涼?（qi1nr9n zh7ng sh&， h7ur9n ch9ngli1ng. While earlier generations plant the trees， posterity will enjoy the shade）.

種?can also be used in situations other than farming; for instance， to have a dental implant is 種牙?（zh7ngy1）; to have a vaccination is 接種疫苗?（ji8zh7ng y#mi1o）， or 種疫苗?（zh7ng y#mi1o） for short. You can also “plant” something abstract， such as in the overly dramatic case of 你在我的心里種下了愛情，我在你的心里種下的是仇恨。（N@ z3i w6 de x～nli zh7ngxi3le 3iq！ng， w6 z3i n@ de x～nli zh7ngxi3 de sh# ch5uh-n.） Or， “You plant love in my heart， but what I have planted in your heart is hatred.”

As mentioned before， when 種?is pronounced with the third tone， as in zh6ng， it turns into a noun. For example， you have 種子?（zh6ngzi， seeds） and 花種?（hu`zh6ng， flower seeds）. Seeds can also be figurative， such as a seeded player， or 種子選手?（zh6ngzi xu2nsh6u）， and a seeded team， or 種子隊?（zh6ngzidu#）.

Although originally connected with plants， the character can also generally refer to animals and people to mean species， or 物種?（w&zh6ng）. When it comes to race， the word to use is 種族?（zh6ngz%）， more academically known as 人種?（r9nzh6ng）.

When a species dies out， which is sadly all too often these days， its called 絕種?（ju9zh6ng）. For instance， 科學(xué)家在研究恐龍為什么會絕種。（K8xu9ji` z3i y1nji$ k6ngl5ng w-i sh9nme hu# ju9zh6ng. Scientists are researching why dinosaurs went extinct.）

Also， as you might imagine， the character is also involved in quite a few insults. Calling someone a 孬種?（n`ozh6ng） is to say they have no guts， a coward. In a confrontation， you will probably hear the aggressive provocation， 有種的站出來?。╕6uzh6ng de zh3n ch$l1i?。?， or “Let anyone who has guts step forward！”

種?can also typify subjects， meaning “kind， style， sort， and type” as in 種類?（zh6ngl-i）. For any special type， use the word 特種?（t-zh6ng）， such as 特種部隊?（t-zh6ng b&du#， special force）. The character is also a measure word， for instance， 漢語是一種美麗的語言?（H3ny^ sh# y# zh6ng m0il# de y^y1n）， which means “Chinese is a type of beautiful language.”

From plants， animals， people， and more， 種?is a testament to the colorful world in which we live.?– huang weijia （黃偉嘉） and LIU JUE （劉玨）