金

jin

gold, metal; money

黄金 gold; 金属 metal; 铁 iron = 金 + 失; 银 silver = 金 +艮

现金 cash

Molten metal (丷) poured into a mold (王+土)

艮

gen

straightforward, blunt, tough, stubborn

艮节 unyielding integrity (archaic)

an eye with a little stroke at the bottom that represents stopping and looking back

银

yin

silver

银饰 silver jewelry; 银矿 silver mine

silver is a tougher - and more prized - metal than gold

as a metal, silver represents stability and lasting value

铅

qian

lead

铅中毒 lead poisoning; 铅心 heavy heart (poetic)

a metal, which children used to put in mouth - lead toy-soldiers

昔

xi

former(ly), past

ancient times, the past

今昔 past and present; 昔年 years gone by

bellow the grass and the horizon is the sun - placed underground to point toward the past times

错

cuo

error, blunder, mistake, wrong

交错 crisscrossed; 对错 right and wrong

to create a metal relying on the techniques from the past would be wrong

失 / 矢 / 夫

shi / shi / tian

to lose, to miss

to make mistake

《孙子兵法》 (Art of War) 失地则亡 Lose territory, and you perish.

失望 – to lose hope → “disappointed"

a man (夫) has just one (⁄) missing the other one, thus losing his stability and making him prone to make mistakes

铁

tie

iron

钢铁 steel; 铁心 iron will

 铁人 iron man (a resilient person)

a metal (钅) you’d never want to lose (失) because it’s so useful - the iron!