Hieroglyphs Addenda · Signs

𓈗N35A · mw · three ripples of water

water

Where it comes from

Three ripple-lines stacked — one ripple tripled into depth. It writes mw, “water,” and follows liquid words as their silent classifierEgyptology's name for a determinative — the silent sign closing a word to say what kind of thing it is: person, speech, plural, idea: drink, wash, flood, tears — whatever pours, these three lines pour after it.

How to remember it

One ripple is a sound; three ripples are water you could fall into. Depth is drawn by stacking — and every liquid in the language carries this little pond along.

In the wild

Piece by piece:

• jꜥi̯ — wash: arm, reed, and the water-sign pouring over the verb
• tw — yourself

An instruction to bathe — with the water classifierEgyptology's name for a determinative — the silent sign closing a word to say what kind of thing it is: person, speech, plural, idea doing the splashing. The sign is taught in 102’s chapter 01.

Easily confused