Introduction
There are really two things going on in this character. It's made up of the radicals:
广 yǎn which means Lean to or Tent and
占 zhàn which means Occupies (When it is pronounced with the first tone zhān, it has to do with fortune telling or divination.) This radical gives the character 店 diàn its sound, as zhàn and diàn are somewhat similar.
The first radical 广 yǎn is said to represent a house on a cliff. I think the little dot on the flat surface is the house with the cliff to its left.
Chinese has many more characters than syllables, meaning each syllable could mean many different things. In spoken Chinese, it's easier to clarify a vague meaning. In written Chinese, it would be more difficult because the author is not physically present to clarify any ambiguity. Therefore, Chinese came up with the radical combination system.
One radical would represent the meaning - in this case 广 yǎn - while the other radical 占 zhàn guides the pronunciation (not perfectly however).
Readers would see the combination 店 diàn and understand "This character's pronunciation is like zhàn 占, but its meaning is similar to 广 yǎn meaning 'a covering' or 'tent.' ...Oh, that must be the diàn 店 meaning "Store or Shop."
I guess old shops would be mobile, and only have a tent-like roof protecting the goods.
By itself the character doesn't fully explain the meaning, it's more like a guide or reminder for those who have already learned. Does that make sense?
Here are some pictures I took. This character is everywhere. The characters preceding 店 diàn explain what kind of store it is, or which location it's at.
This character is common enough that you will probably find it in Chinese-themed restaurants or supermarkets. When you find it, ask a Chinese speaker "Shemma diàn?" You'll be asking him "What store is this?" and he'll either reply in Chinese or English. Either way, you'll have practice speaking the character and associating its pronunciation with its image in your mind.
What characters do you want to learn next? Leave me a comment and let me know. I'm here to help YOU!
-Michael McGillicuddy
Guangdong, China
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